The 5 Times Series
by feministkendra
Summary: A series of one-shots that are shaped as "5 times " and sometimes "5 times and 1 time " and other shapings! A mixture of fluff, hurt/comfort, family, and maybe a little bit of romance here and there!
1. 5 Times Warren Had Kendra's Back

**A/N: Dark themes ahead folks, some sexism, slight violence, talk of eating disorders, slight verbal abuse and harassment. Sounds like a fun fic right! But don't worry, Warren is there to make it all better and it's more comfort than hurt in the hurt/comfort department! Sorry for the darkness, I had a different idea when I started this but the story just wrote itself. Also, this is pretty much just a bunch of canon divergence just so you know! I love this brotp so much okay, ENJOY 12,00 WORDS OF PURE HURT/COMFORT!**

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1.

Kendra looked out the window of the kitchen sadly as she watched Coulter and Seth go out on another "Boys Only Mission". She hated to admit it but it really hurt her. Especially now that she didn't have Vanessa, she felt more left out and alone than ever.

She understood if Coulter just didn't want Seth to feel left out after the news of her joining the Knights of the Dawn, but Coulter had straight up looked her in the eye and told her the only reason she wasn't allowed to come was that she is a girl.

It hurt.

"Hey, kiddo. Why so sad? Who killed your puppy?" Kendra turned to see Warren walking into the kitchen, his eyebrows furrowed at her.

She sighed. "It's stupid...it's just…" Kendra trailed off. What if Warren thought the same as Coulter? "...Nevermind."

"Oh, nah. You aren't pulling that one." Warren shook his head, pulled up a chair next to her, leaned his elbow on the table and held his head in his hand. "Come on, tell me. You look upset and I'm not gonna just let that go by with an 'it's nothing,' Kendra… _I-don't-know-your-middle-name-yet_ Sorenson."

"It's Marie." Kendra gave him a small smile.

"Ahh! Kendra Marie Sorenson, huh? Very adorable. Now that I have middle name power, tell me what's wrong, Kendra Marie."

Kendra bit her lip. She knew Warren wouldn't let it go, and she was a terrible liar, so she couldn't fake a reason why she was upset.

"Coulter took Seth out on some secret adventure thing."

"Okay, and...?"

"He said… Coulter said I wasn't allowed to come… because I'm a girl." She finished the sentence with a mumble, turning her head as far away from Warren's gaze as she could while her eyes started to tear up. How dumb. She was on the verge of crying over something so simple.

Kendra heard Warren sigh and braced herself for his response.

"I can't believe he is still doing that. That's...not right, Kens. I'm sorry."

Kendra turned her head around to face him for a moment before she remembered she was crying, then whipped away from him again in the hopes that he wouldn't notice. But of course, this was Warren, and he was nothing if not observant.

"Hey, hey, Kendra...oh come on, kid. Don't cry, you'll break my poor heart," Warren tried to joke, his chuckle falling a little flat as she heard the worry in his voice. He put his hand on her shoulder, trying to turn her towards him but she shook her head and pulled away, a small sob escaping her.

"Oh, Kens...come here. Follow me." Warren stood up, taking her hand and tugging on it gently to get her to follow. He led her up the stairs and into the spare room that he had claimed as his, then crawled onto his bed and patted the space in front of him. Kendra sat down.

"Alright now, listen to me. While Coulter is a great Knight, awesome with artifacts, very smart… he can be, and excuse my language, an asshole." Warren started, earning a small smile from Kendra.

"I don't know, maybe it's my fault. I mean, here I am crying just because I couldn't go out on an adventure with two boys. That's not something that shows my strength, I guess," Kendra mumbled, her eyes on Warren's blue comforter and her hands idly pulling at her fingers so that the joints popped.

"No, Kendra. Absolutely not," Warren said firmly. "This was not your fault in the slightest. Deep down you know that. This is sexism, in the purest form. There is no excuse. None."

"But, maybe he just thought I wasn't strong enough to do whatever he brought Seth to do?"

"What were his exact words when he said you couldn't go?" Warren asked curiously.

"He said... 'I would take you but the reason I won't is that you are a girl,' and then he told me to go inside." Kendra heard Warren sigh.

"Kens, hey. K, look at me," Warren placed a finger under her chin directing her head up to meet his eyes. "That is sexism, it's discrimination and it isn't right, but it has nothing to do with your strength and ability. In fact, you have more qualifications than your brother at this point in time."

"I...it really hurt." Kendra whimpered, eyes welling up with tears again as her bottom lip trembled. Warren's face fell and his head leaned to the side while he looked at her sadly.

"Come here, kiddo," he said softly, holding out his arms. Kendra hesitated, but when she couldn't keep the tears in any longer and the dam broke, she quickly crawled over to Warren who pulled her into his lap, wrapping her up in a tight hug.

"I-It's not fair, Warr...It's not fair." Kendra sobbed into his neck.

"Shh, I know. Shh, I got you," Warren hushed her, rocking her back and forth. Kendra hadn't known Warren for too long, but she felt comforted and safe at the moment. She was so relieved that he thought Coulter was wrong as well.

"Seth d-didn't seem to think it wasn't okay. He even l-laughed at m-me, that h-hurt even more," Kendra confessed, a fresh wave of tears falling from her eyes. God, she was probably soaking Warren's neck and shirt. She felt bad, but she couldn't seem to lift her head up from where it was buried into the bottom of his neck.

"And that was wrong of him as well, but try to remember your brother is a young boy. He probably still thinks girls have cooties and all that." Warren reasoned. "Plus, you're his older sister, so he automatically thought this was just something he beats his sibling at."

"I guess."

"Hey, look at me," Warren said again. Kendra complied, pulling her head back to meet his eyes sadly. "I don't think he meant it the same way Coulter did. He probably was thinking of it as payback for you coming with us to join the Knights."

Kendra nodded, feeling a bit better. "But, Coulter is supposed to be my mentor...what kind of mentor makes me feel like I can't do things, only because I'm a girl?"

Warren smiled bitterly. "Apparently an outdated one." He wiped some tears off Kendra's face. "But, you Kendra, are fully capable of anything. Hey, you joined me in the Inverted Tower, right?"

"Yeah, but you did everything."

"Not true! You threw that flashlight to distract the minotaur, giving me time to get out of the sand! And if it wasn't for you and your fairy magic, I would be dead right now, remember?" Kendra nodded reluctantly.

"So you are fully capable. Also, you saved your family last summer! I bet Seth couldn't get help from the Fairy Queen, now, could he?" Warren said, bopping her nose lightly, earning a smile. He eased her off his lap and onto the bed, and stood up and grabbed some tissues off his desk. Making his way back towards her, he tilted her head back up and wiped the rest of her tears away before sitting back down.

"Now, don't ever let that grumpy old man ever see you crying over him. But if you do need to cry, my door is always open. Got it?" He asked, giving her a kind smile. Kendra tried to smile back, but it fell flat.

"Warren?" Kendra said quietly, staring at her lap.

"Yeah?"

"Why do people hate girls so much? Why are we somehow lesser than boys?"

There was a pause after her question. She glanced up through her eyelashes at Warren. He was staring at her with a troubled look on his face. Once he caught her eye, she quickly looked down.

"First off," Warren sighed. "Women are _not_ less than men. Don't let any boy or man, no matter how young, old, or powerful, make you believe that. Secondly…"

He trailed off for a moment. Kendra was tempted to look back up but she didn't want to catch his eye again. Warren had a way of looking like he could read her mind, and a lot of the time it seemed like he could with the way he could tell how she was feeling with a single glance.

She didn't want him to see how nervous and put down she felt.

"Secondly," Warren started again. "People tend to hate women because our history has always painted the picture of women as nothing but men's entertainment. But, it's a wrong and shameful history. Hopefully, things will start to change. I...I hate that you have to experience this first hand so young, but it's the sad truth to this world."

"So, this will be happening all my life?" Kendra asked, feeling hopeless. Why was the world like this? Why would she be judged just because of the way her body was made?

"I wish I could say differently, sweetie. But I know, just from my own mother and the other women in my life, that you will have to work ten times harder than any boy for the same recognition. You'll be told how to act, dress, speak, anything, and judged when you don't conform to society's standards."

"Oh."

"This talk is pretty heavy for a fourteen-year-old, huh?" Warren chuckled. Kendra risked a glance up and saw him looking down at himself, biting his thumbnail. When he looked back up, Kendra snapped her eyes down again.

"Why are you afraid to look at me?"

"I'm not."

"Then why do you keep looking down?" Kendra bit her lip, eyebrows furrowed. Maybe it would be easier, to tell the truth than hide it. Warren had been supportive so far...

"Can you read minds?" Kendra asked suddenly, hesitating when Warren burst into laughter. She watched him with big eyes as he laughed, his eyes scrunched shut. When he opened them back up and saw her face, he sobered.

"Wait, you were serious?" He asked. When she shyly nodded feeling a bit embarrassed, he slightly cocked his head to the side. "Why would you think I can read minds?"

"...Because you can always tell how I'm really feeling just by looking at me. Even when I try to hide it, you always know. I don't get it," she confessed.

"Oh, honey. That's just because you read like a book. Those big green eyes are more expressive than you know. That's how I can tell-and so can Dale, and Tanu, and pretty much everyone else."

"So you can tell what I'm feeling right now?" Kendra looked at him, curious. Warren studied her face intently for a second, complete with a whole scanner sound and motion, dramatizing every move and making her giggle.

"You're probably thinking, 'Oh, my cousin is so funny! He is definitely my favorite cousin!' Am I right?" Warren winked.

Kendra laughed again and humored him. "Right, Warr."

"See! I speak Kendra! Now, how about you and me go on an adventure ourselves? I can show you my favorite safe spots in the forest if you would like?" His eyes shined with Seth-like mischief and Kendra brightened.

"Really?!" she exclaimed, sitting up straighter. Warren nodded, hopping off the bed and extending a hand to help her off.

"Let's go adventuring, Kens!"

* * *

2.

Kendra yawned and stretched as she exited the rental car. The Knights had sent her on another small mission before she could go back home to Fablehaven; Warren was still with her as her official guardian, which was something she was very grateful for.

Speaking of Warren, he came around the other side of the car and smiled at her. "Ready to go speak to some dryads, K?"

"I guess. It's not like I have experience," she said, rubbing her dry eyes. She had taken a nap in the car and now she was having trouble waking up. They had only left Lost Mesa yesterday, and she hadn't exactly been feeling well-rested.

"Welcome to my world. That's like half the missions I've been assigned to," Warren laughed, leading her to the preserve's main house. "But hey, that's how you gain experience, right?"

They were on a smaller preserve in Maine. It was in the middle of the state and surrounded by more trees than Kendra would have imagined possible in that part of the country.

Over the next few hours, they situated themselves in the house, put their luggage down in a couple of the guest rooms, met the caretakers and other knights that would be joining the mission, and ate a small dinner. Kendra didn't particularly like the last part, but Warren was looking at her as if he was just praying she would eat, so she forced herself to.

The caretakers of the place were nice enough, and most of the other people living on the preserve were alright, but one of them seemed to immediately dislike Kendra. Trevor, a tall, hulking, bodybuilder type of man, constantly sent dirty looks to them. He scoffed at Warren, who he apparently knew, and looked Kendra up and down with a glint in his eyes which made Kendra so uncomfortable that she stepped behind Warren, who reached back and squeezed her hand while he continued his conversation with the caretaker. Apparently, he did not miss the way Trevor was staring at Kendra, either.

The caretaker eventually had to show Warren the map of the preserve which they kept in their office and lead a hesitant Warren out of the room, leaving Kendra alone with Trevor. Kendra shifted uncomfortably as she felt Trevor's eyes on her.

"So." Kendra jumped at Trevor's booming voice. "What did they bring a little girl in here to do? Play dress up for us?"

Kendra's skin crawled with the implications of his analogy and wanted Warren back. "N-no. I'm going to be leading the mission to talk with the dryads."

"Are you kidding? You? Leading me? Have you ever even talked to the dryads?" Trevor sneered.

"I haven't yet, but-"

Trevor rolled his eyes. "You're telling me we have to listen to a fourteen-year-old girl, when her damn self, hasn't spoken to dryads yet? Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous."

Kendra felt embarrassed for a second, then remembered what Warren had told her about a week ago in his room; to not let any man tell her she is less than him. Warren wasn't here right now, so she had to stand up for herself. Taking a deep breath, Kendra looked Trevor in the eyes and began to verbalize her thoughts.

"I'm sorry, but do _you_ speak the language of the dryads?" When Trevor didn't answer, she continued, keeping her tone light. "Exactly. And as your caretakers have mentioned, the dryads are refusing to speak in English, so please tell me how you would be a better fit for this mission than me. Because with all due respect, there is no possible way you would be."

"Why, you little _shit_. How dare you speak to a superior like that?!" He made several steps towards Kendra, whose eyes widened in fear, and she backed up until she hit the wall behind her with Trevor right up in her face. "You are _nothing_ , you are a rookie that got lucky a few times. Not even off your own talent! You leech off others because you are a good for nothing, stupid, ugly, fat little bitch, that is going to kill her entire team with her incompetence one of these days."

Kendra shook in fear at the hulking man glaring down at her. The insults had hit very close to home, and her body immediately wanted to throw up any of the food she had eaten in the past two months.

"I-" she started.

Trevor slapped her hard across the face, his sharp rings digging into her cheek. Kendra's head whipped to the side, her hands coming up to cup her cheek in shock, tears filling her eyes. She could hear footsteps rushing towards the kitchen but Trevor was too busy insulting her to notice.

" _Shut up!_ I wasn't done speaking to you! You little fu-"

Suddenly Trevor was out of her face. She heard a slam on the floor and when she looked over to see what had caused the noise, she saw Warren holding Trevor down, standing above him with his foot on Trevor's chest and holding a sword at his neck. Kendra had never seen him look so positively angry before.

"Now you listen to me closely, Trevor," Warren hissed. "The last time I worked with you, it was _you_ that almost got the whole team and yourself killed with _your_ ineptitude, so you are not in the place to be preaching to others about incompetence. Now, what were you doing at fourteen years old? Nothing. Probably running around being a little shit; nothing special. Not even _close_ to what Kendra has accomplished at her age."

"And on that note," Warren leaned in toward the other man's face, keeping his sword at Trevor's neck and kneeling on his chest, "Kendra is a smart, kind, beautiful young girl with a heart of gold. So don't you ever, _ever_ try to tell her she's anything less. And for your information, you jackass…"

Warren lowered his voice to a whisper so only Trevor, Kendra and himself could hear him, "Kendra has been battling an eating disorder, you goddamn bastard. So, it is in your best interest to take back that insult and pray God forgives you. Because even though _fat_ isn't an insult, you body shaming dick, she is the farthest thing from it; she is _underweight_ and I swear on my life that if your stupid, ignorant words have caused my baby cousin to relapse, even more, I will _end_ you. Do you understand me?"

Trevor nodded as best he could with a sword at his throat. "Good. Oh, and one more thing," Warren said, voice dropping down to a lethal hiss. "If you _ever_ lay a hand on Kendra again, it will be the last thing you do. Are we clear on that?"

Trevor nodded frantically and Warren pushed off of the frightened man roughly, watching as he ran out of the room while wearing a murderous look on his face. He turned to Kendra, who was still holding her aching cheek, tears streaming down her face with her eyes wide and scared, and his face instantly softened completely.

He dropped his sword and approached her cautiously, eyes full of concern. He slowly brought his hands up to hers, softly tugging them away from her cheek so he could see her injury. She saw his eyes darken a tad at whatever mark Trevor had left on her. Swiping a thumb softly across her cheek, he examined more closely. When he withdrew his thumb, Kendra saw blood on his finger. Trevor's rings must have cut her skin.

Warren sighed and drew her into the softest hug Kendra had ever been a part of. She realized he was probably trying not to scare her and she was grateful for that because she was very shaken. When he pulled back, he kept one arm around her and started leading her out of the room, picking up his dropped sword on the way out.

They made their way to her guest room and Kendra walked in expecting Warren to follow, but he stayed in the doorway. "Stay here for a second, okay Kens? I'm going to go get a first aid kit." The softness in his tone matched the gentleness of his previous actions.

She nodded and he shut the door. Kendra heard him walking down the hall but then she sank to the floor, her quaking legs not able to hold her anymore. She brought her knees up to her chest and hid her face between them. She heard voices near her door and she flinched, bringing her hands up to block her ears as she sat there shaking and scared.

Suddenly, there was a gentle touch on her shoulder. Kendra screamed and flinched back. Warren was kneeling there, hands in the air, with a first aid kit next to him. She noticed the door was shut and relaxed before she started crying again.

"W-Warren!" Kendra sobbed, reaching for him. Warren's face fell to something between worry and sadness as he crawled his way over to her and pulled her into his arms. Kendra realized this would mark the second time she cried in Warren's arms.

"You're okay now, Kens. You're safe, I'm here, I'm right here. Shh," Warren whispered, his ever-gentle hand smoothing her hair down. "I'm here. You don't need to be scared, sweetie; you're safe now, he won't hurt you again, I promise. I promise."

"H-he, he...I…" Kendra tried to speak but she was in shock and could hardly breathe correctly. Warren seemed to know what she was trying to say anyway, though.

"I know, I know. He said the vilest things to you; I heard," Warren whispered. "But none of them were true, you understand me?"

"Y-yes, I u-understand," she said shakily.

"Good," he breathed, pressing a soft kiss to her head. He then stood up, Kendra still cradled in his arms and carried her over to the guest bed. He carefully sat her down on it before going to pick up the abandoned first aid kit from the floor.

"Is it bad?" Kendra asked, fingers touching her cheek gingerly, feeling a slight sting.

"No, it's just a small scrape, but I want to make sure it doesn't get infected. Who knows how dirty that scum's rings are." He sat down on the bed in front of her. Opening the first aid kit, he found the disinfectant, a cotton ball, and some kind of liquid. He picked up the bottle of liquid and popped it open, then poured some of its contents onto the cotton ball. "This will sting, I'm not gonna lie."

He gingerly dabbed the wet cotton ball directly against the cut on her cheekbone. It immediately started to sting a lot, and Kendra hissed at the burn. Warren mumbled a low 'sorry' and finished applying the liquid to the cut. "That would have cleaned and gotten rid of any dirt or bacteria, okay?"

She nodded, and he then opened the tube of disinfectant gel and started to rub some of it on the scrape. This time there was no stinging, and Warren finished applying the gel quickly.

"There's really no band-aid in here that would stay on your cheek, so just try not to touch it too much, alright?" He said, putting everything back in the first aid kit. He snapped it shut and then tossed it softly onto the carpet. Turning back to her, his eyes scanned her face.

"How are you?" He asked her simply. Kendra didn't know how to answer that. She had been attacked and verbally abused barely ten minutes ago. "I'm sorry I told him about your eating disorder, Kens. That wasn't my information to tell."

Kendra shook her head. "No, I'm glad you did. Maybe he will think about the weight of his words before he says them next time."

"You're too kind, kiddo." Warren smiled. "Now, be honest. How are you mentally?"

"Honestly? Not too good," Kendra said, taking a deep breath. "I'm...I'm just really shaken up."

"Understandable. Totally understandable," He reassured her, tilting his head and catching her eyes sadly. "Is there anything I can do?"

"I don't know...I'm just scared."

"He won't hurt you again."

"I know, I know. But, it was scary...really scary. I think I'm still feeling the fear from that moment. I-I just feel like he is still in my face screaming at me." Kendra sniffled. Warren pressed his lips together.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked. Kendra shook her head. Secretly, she knew what she wanted, but she was too shy and embarrassed to ask for it. "Kens, really. Anything I can do to help, I'll do it. I just want you to feel even a little better; that was a horrible thing to go through."

His voice hadn't changed from his super soft tone. It made Kendra feel safer; compared to the screaming in her face, this was much more preferable. She fiddled with her earring, trying to come up with the courage to tell Warren what she needed.

"Kens?" He inquired, giving her that same old calculating look.

"Can...can…" Kendra started but faltered. What if he thought it was stupid? Or childish?

"It's okay. Go on," he urged her.

"Can..we just...cuddle?" Kendra asked in a very faint whisper. Warren leaned forward to try and hear her, but he shook his head.

"Kens, I can't hear you. Whatever it is, I won't judge you. I promise."

"I said, can we just cuddle?" Kendra repeated, this time a tad bit louder. Warren seemed to hear her this time because he smiled softly at her.

"Of course we can cuddle, K. Really, that's it?" Kendra nodded. "What, did you think I would say no?" Another nod. "Are you kidding? I never say no to cuddles, Kens."

Warren stood up and grabbed the big throw blanket from the bottom of the bed and unfolded it, laying it down on the bed before crawling up on the other side of Kendra and sliding beneath the blanket. He held it up so Kendra could slide under as well and he pulled her close, tucking her in.

"It was really scary, Warr…" Kendra whispered from her place in Warren's arms. Her lower lip trembled as she remembered the amount of fear she had felt in that moment, and her breathing became a little rougher and faster.

"I can only imagine, K. I'm so sorry you had to go through that," he said, sounding sincere. He tucked a hair behind her ear. "Don't get worked up, okay? You're alright."

"I know...it's just...he said really mean things and they…"

"They hurt."

"Yeah. I know you said they weren't true, and all that… but they still hurt," Kendra said, drawing small patterns into Warren's shirt. "Especially the… the one about my weight."

"Kendra I promise you, you are beautiful at any weight. But right now, you are _under_ weight because of your eating disorder, which is the farthest you can get from fat. I can feel your little ribs right here." Warren tickled her ribs and Kendra shrieked with laughter.

"Stop! I'm ticklish!" she giggled, trying to get away from Warren. Warren faked gasped.

"Oh, are you? Is my little cousin ticklish, huh? Is she?" He said, and Kendra was breathless with giggles, squirming and trying to get out of his tight hold but right before she escaped, he stopped.

"You're… so… mean…" Kendra wheezed between gasps of air but laid back down in Warren's arms anyway.

"Hey, I got you to smile, right? I think that counts as a win," he said. Kendra shook her head, trying to deny it, but her lips betrayed her when they began curving upwards again before she controlled them back into a frown.

"No. It was fake laughter," she pouted.

Warren waved a finger at her. "Don't you smile!" he half sang. "Don't you dare smile!"

Kendra did her best to keep the pout on her face but as Warren continued his chant, she found herself giggling again. Warren grinned in victory. "That's not fair! That's the oldest trick in the book!" she protested.

"Perfect for sad Kendra! Besides, all is fair in love and war." Warren said. Kendra smiled again, but this time it was genuine. She had thought their conversation was going to turn heavy and emotional but of course, Warren always knew what she really needed in the end. She needed some laughs and happiness, not to talk about her struggles and other sad things.

"Thank you, Warr," Kendra said, throwing her arms around him and snuggling in further. "You really are the best big cousin. Don't tell Dale."

She tilted her head and he smiled at her, eyes warm. "You're welcome, Kens. You're the best little cousin. Don't tell Seth."

Warren put a finger to his lips in a shushing motion and winked. Kendra smiled and copied him before tucking her head back down and closing her eyes, ready for a nap. As she drifted off to sleep, she had a few sad thoughts about the commotion that happened today and wondered how it would take a toll on her. Before she could get too far into her negative thoughts, however, she felt Warren press a kiss to her head and she fell asleep feeling safe.

* * *

3.

They had set up camp in Wyrmroost for the night, a fire was burning, the tents were pitched and Tanu was making everyone sandwiches. It should be a peaceful moment. But Kendra's heart was racing fifty miles per hour. She was breaking out in cold sweats and her whole body was shaking.

No one had seemed to notice her condition just yet, all too busy talking amongst themselves. Kendra scanned the trees, something had to be out there, what if there was something out there, was it going to kill them in their sleep, would they even have time to scream, would they even wake up, she shouldn't sleep tonight, she should stay up all ni-

"Here you go Kens!" Tanu passed her a paper plate with a sandwich on it. She stared at it, hand half raised to take it before she shook her head, scanning the trees again.

"No, no, no. They're gonna find us...they, they...we should move. Oh, God, we're gonna die, oh no, oh no, no, no…" She rambled off quickly. Warren turned to her concerned and Tanu put the plate down.

"Kendra, what are you talking about? We're okay in this area of the sanctuary it's one of the safer zones, remember?" Tanu said calmly, but Kendra shook her head frantically.

"No, no, no, no! What if they kill us and we and we and and an-" She started hyperventilating and scrambling back from the group. Tanu muttered a curse and went over to his potion bag as Warren hurried over to Kendra to stop her from going any further, wrapping his arms around her.

"Kendra, you're okay, you're okay. Just deep breaths, sweetheart, c'mon, deep breaths." He whispered in her ear and Kendra really did try but it was too hard, she was too scared, all she could think off was something was going to attack them. When she tried to focus on her breathing and slow it down, she only started breathing even quicker, if that was possible. She could feel her heartbeat pumping wildly in her chest, she could feel the erratic rhythm in her head. The crying wasn't helping either, it was causing hiccups in her breathing blocking air from her lungs making her feel so lightheaded she was sure she was going to faint.

"Tanu she's burning up! She's all clammy and I can't calm her down." Warren called out. Too loud, she thought, they are going to hear us.

"Too loud, too loud, it's too loud..." Kendra sobbed.

"Too loud, darlin'? Okay, okay, how's this. Nice and quiet." Warren whispered, still holding her tight in his arms, rubbing her arm soothingly. She had no idea what the others were doing, it was a blur, but then one voice stood out.

"Why in the hell is she even crying and freaking out? Jeez, we are trying to eat, this is so stupid!" Gavin exclaimed. Couldn't he see she was trying to calm down? Couldn't he see she was scared? It hurt Kendra to hear him sneer at her like she was a pathetic little girl. She was just scared. She was just scared. She was just scared.

"She's crying because she's having a panic attack. She's crying because she is fifteen in a freakin' dragon sanctuary and it's scary for her, so don't be a brat! Just shut up, eat your food and mind your damn mouth!" Warren shouted at Gavin, glaring at the boy. Kendra shuddered in his arms.

"Too loud, too loud, I can't breathe, this is too much, Warr. I can't breathe, I'm gonna pass out, I can't," she sobbed. Scared, she was so scared, and hurt, how could he not see she was scared?

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Too loud, that was too loud, I know." Warren was back to whispering in her ear now. He brushed her hair that was stuck on her clammy skin back out of her face gently. "You can breathe, just deep breaths, come on, in, hold it,...and out. Good girl, there you go."

Kendra continued to follow Warren's instructions as best she could, but she knew she was failing horribly at it. Failing. A failure. She was a failure.

"You are not a failure, Kendra Marie. C'mon, breathe slowly, deep breaths, I know you're trying."

Scared. Scared. She was so scared. She was so sure that some terrible monster was going to attack them.

"You're safe, don't be scared, Kens, you're safe right now. No monster is going to attack us, we're safe."

She was gonna pass out, her head felt so light.

"If you pass out, I have you. Don't worry. It's okay, Kendra. Shh, It's okay."

"Tanu is mixing a calming potion as fast he can."

"Thanks, Mara."

Kendra couldn't breathe, she couldn't breathe. She felt her head spinning and she heard ringing in her ears she was going to pass out, everything was going fuzzy.

"I got you, I got you, sweetie. It's okay, shh. Don't worry, I'm right here. You're saf…"

The world faded to black.

* * *

"...And listen to me here Gavin, I don't care how much you claim to like her, I don't care how chill you feel around dragons. _She_ is not used to being around dragons. One of the most _dangerous_ creatures known to the magical world, if not _the_ most dangerous. We trained her to know that, we made sure she knew how scary they are, how dangerous, how murderous, and she was _scared_. She is allowed to be scared. Do you understand, dragon boy?"

"...Yes."

"Yes, what?

"Yes, _sir."_

"If you ever _think_ about calling Kendra _stupid_ again, dragons will be the least of your worries, bud."

"...I understand, sir."

"Now, get out and go help the others dissemble the tents and the rest of the camp."

"Yes, sir."

Kendra listened to the conversation in confusion. She recognized Warren and Gavin's voice, but she couldn't remember what had happened, why were they fighting about her? Gavin called her stupid? She groaned as her head pulsed in pain.

"Kens?" A hand took hers. "Kens, you awake?"

Warren. She squeezed his hand as tight as she could - which wasn't very tight - and felt a squeeze back. "That's good, Kendra. Can you open your eyes? I dimmed all the lights so it won't hurt you."

Kendra focused and soon her eyelids were fluttering open until Warren came into view smiling lightly at her. "There are those green eyes. How are you feeling sweetie?"

Kendra tried to speak but her throat was too scratchy. Warren leaned over her and plucked a water bottle from a stand next to the cot. Looking around she saw she was in the knapsack. He lifted her head up with one hand and with the other he poured a little water into her mouth. Kendra swallowed and found her throat to be a little better.

"I'm okay? I think." Her voice was still a little hoarse, she accepted more water from Warren. "What happened? I...I can't remember much."

Warren sighed and sat down on the cot by Kendra's hip, "You had a panic attack. You were clamming up, rambling, scared, shaking, even a bit feverish. You were hyperventilating so much that you passed out. Scared the crap outta me…"

Kendra was quiet for a moment, thinking hard and trying to remember it. Slowly bits and pieces made their way out of the fog. "Oh...I'm sorry."

Warren wiped at his face, was he crying? "Don't be sorry, sweetie. It wasn't your fault. It just hurt to see you so scared. I couldn't get you to calm down...You were trying to, I know you were, you were just too far gone and it happened so quick."

"I-" Kendra tried to clear her throat but had trouble so Warren came to the rescue and gave her more water. Now that he was closer, she could see the tear in his eyes. At the sight, she felt her own eyes start pricking with tears. "I remember I felt scared for a while but I thought I was just nervous...and then it just exploded into utter terror."

"I know, one minute you were fine, the next you were ranting about being scared and sobbing. Tanu was trying to make a calming potion as fast as he could but you passed out before we could give it to you" Warren sniffed. Kendra saw a tear drop from his face onto the floor of the knapsack.

"Warr…" Kendra said, her voice sad.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to start crying on you." Warren said thickly, wiping at his eyes again. "I just...I felt so helpless seeing you like that."

Kendra felt her own tears fall down her cheeks and she scooted over in the tiny bed. "Warren come here. Please," She begged. Warren took one look at outstretched arms and puppy dog eyes and laid right down, hugging her close.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was getting anxious. This place really scares me, I can't shake the feeling something bad is going to happen." Kendra mumbled against his chest, she felt horrible about making him cry.

"It's okay, Kendra, you can't control panic attacks. I've had them before and they get the best of you suddenly. I don't blame you in the slightest," Warren said, running his hand over her hair softly.

"I'm sorry for making you cry."

"Don't you dare. _You_ didn't make me cry, the situation did. Besides, I'm just a softie who can stand to see his baby cousin so upset. I'm more sensitive than you think, Kensie Cutie." Warren said, kissing her forehead.

Kendra smiled up at him, laughing a little at the nickname that had been picked up by her family ever since Seth told them about how her mom and dad used to call her that. She still felt bad about Warren crying. Last time she had seen him cry was when he saw her alive after the whole stingbulb fiasco.

"You know, this whole crying and cuddling thing is becoming a pattern," she mumbled. Tucking her head under his chin, Kendra felt his cheek on the top of her head. "But if I'm being honest, I don't mind it one bit.

"Neither do I, Kens. Not in the slightest."

* * *

4.

Kendra laughed at Warren's story as they walked down a street of a nearby town window shopping. Warren had noticed how anxious Kendra was getting stuck in Fablehaven while they thought up a rescue plan to save Seth. So he grabbed her, took her on a 45-minute drive, and stopped at the next cute looking town with some stores and cafes.

"And then, Dale looked at me and-"

"Hey, little sexy thing! Why so many clothes? Take em' off!" A call came from behind Kendra. She froze, afraid to look back and see who was talking to her.

"Hey, jackass. Why don't you get a brain and stop sexually harassing young girls on the street," Warren shot back at the catcaller. Kendra looked up at him, not sure what to do and saw he was glaring at someone right behind them. But then Warren turned around, and Kendra heard footsteps coming towards them.

"What'd you call me?!" came the voice again, this time much closer. Kendra jumped and hid behind Warren, peeking out to see a middle-aged white man in a half-unbuttoned, button up and tight jeans walking their way, looking pissed.

"I called you a jackass, and I stick by it," Warren said calmly. The catcaller was all up in Warren's face and Kendra was scared he would swing at Warren. The man's eyes fell on her and instantly Kendra felt vulnerable and hid back behind Warren.

"Aw, come on pretty thing, don't hide behind your… whoever this is to you. Show me a smile!"

"I would leave her alone if you don't want _your_ smile to be knocked out of your mouth," Warren hissed at the man icily.

"Oh ho! We got a tough guy here! You threatening me? You wanna go huh?" The man stepped even closer to Warren, but Warren stood his ground. Kendra curled her fingers in Warren's shirt, utterly terrified and creeped out.

Warren chuckled darkly. "Oh no, I won't be wasting my fighting skills on you. I was talking about how your cellmate in jail will knock your teeth out for me, seeing as you're some middle aged creep who gets his rocks off to minors. Even criminals don't like a pedophile, you dirtbag."

"Hey, I didn't know she was underage," The man's voice had lost his confidence.

"Yeah, right. You and I both know she doesn't look older than fourteen, so why don't you scram before I call the cops and tell them they have a man walking around harassing minors," Warren stared into the man's eyes without flinching. After a tense moment, the catcaller shoved past Warren and walked away.

Kendra turned Warren around as a shield as the man strolled by her. Once gone, she kept her arms around Warren, trying to keep herself calm. Her stomach was turning and she chills ran up her spine at the memory of the stranger's seedy gaze.

"You okay?" Warren's calming voice broke through her thoughts and she nodded against his chest. She just needed a moment to remind herself she was safe.

"Is he gone?"

"Yeah, he's long gone."

Kendra took a deep breath, then pulled away. She peered down the street and sure enough, there was no sign of the stranger anywhere. "Can we go somewhere else?"

"Of course, how about we go back to the car and figure it out from there?" Warren suggested. She nodded and they made their way back to where Warren had parked his car on the side of the street. It was a bit of a way back but thankfully it was an uneventful walk.

Shutting the car door, Kendra sighed and leaned back against the car seat. "Why do I keep running into such gross and mean men?"

"Wish I knew, kid," Warren laughed as he punched something into the GPS. "God, that guy was revolting."

"Understatement."

"I know I already asked but, are you okay?" he questioned, turning the key and starting up the car. Kendra thought about it for a moment. Physically, she was fine. The encounter didn't really hurt her, she was a little shaken up and disgusted but she had dealt with worse.

"Yeah, it just made me extremely uncomfortable," she assured him shuddering. She folded her arms around her middle tightly, she felt too exposed after the man's eyes on her and wanted to hide inside a huge blanket. "Thanks for taking care of it."

"Of course, now how about we go get something to eat?" Warren pulled out of the parking spot and began following the GPS's instructions. Kendra rested her head against the window and closed her eyes. She listened to the radio playing softly in the background and Warren humming along with it occasionally, letting the familiar sound ease the rest of the tension from the confrontation in her body out.

Some fifteen minutes later, Warren pulled into the parking lot of some restaurant and parked near the front. "Let's rock and roll, kiddo."

She laughed at his wording and followed him into the diner where they were seated and their drink orders were taken by their waiter, a guy that looked a little older than her. Kendra yawned and rested her head in her hands, feeling drained.

"Someone needs a nap," Warren teased, she nodded not even bothering to pretend like she didn't. "At least you'll sleep good tonight, huh?"

"If I make it to night time," she mumbled, eyes slipping shut. "I might pass out in the car."

"Nah, I think I'll make you drive home."

"I was under the impression you wanted to make it back to the house alive," Warren laughed at that. Their drinks arrived then and they ordered their food, Kendra forcing her eyes open and lifting her head up.

"I hate talking to boys," she sighed once their waiter was gone. Warren furrowed his eyebrows at her and tilted his head to the side.

"Why's that? Something tells me this isn't just normal teenage girl shy around boy thing," He asked, peeling the wrapper off his straw and then shooting the other half at her by blowing into the straw.

"Hey! Mean!" She whined throwing the wrapper back at him. "But, no. It's not the normal teenage thing. It's more a...Gavin...issue."

That sobered Warren up. He immediately was paying full attention and had what Kendra had dubbed his 'older brother face' on. He waited patiently for her to continue.

"I've just been really uncomfortable and scared about boys since him. It just freaks me out now."

"Why? If you don't mind me asking," Warren said softly. Kendra stared at her water as she stirred it.

"When he...had me trapped in the cleft, I really thought he was going to….do something bad...like that guy earlier," Kendra finished softly, mind somewhere else. Warren's voice brought her back.

"Hey, if I'm around no one will ever even get near enough to you to even think about it," He assured her, but Kendra bit her lip.

"But, Warren...that's the point. You weren't around on the cleft. Gavin made sure of that. That's why I was so scared…"

"God, Kens...I'm sorry," Warren sighed, running his hand through his hair. Kendra stared at him for a second, confused.

"What do you mean? You couldn't help that he was an evil...gecko," Warren nearly spit out his water at that.

"I meant more like, I'm sorry it happened to you," Warren explained after controlling his laughter.

"Still! It's not your fault! You are probably one of the few men I still trust if I'm being honest," Kendra admitted, shrugging her shoulder. Warren smiled at her at that and she returned it before continuing. "And...I don't know...it's just hard being a girl and I still don't understand why it has to be that way."

Warren sighed heavily from across the booth. "I don't know either, darlin'. I wish I did," He reached across the table to stop her from pulling at her fingers. Then held one hand while looking at her seriously. "But always remember that you are strong, beautiful, and an amazing girl who will _not_ take any shit from any man and I'm proud of you."

Kendra smiled brightly. Then she threw the straw wrapper she had hidden at him right in the forehead before laughing. Warren tried to keep a disapproving face but as soon as Kendra's giggles kicked in he couldn't resist a smile.

All and all, Kendra had a great day.

* * *

5.

Kendra sighed as the team continued to argue. In the hotel room, there were about five people, and nearly all of them were fighting. Over her.

"She is too young! This ridiculous that we are even having this conversation!" Elise exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air, bracelets jingling.

"Kendra has done many things that most people wouldn't let children do and she is okay! She is a natural!" Tanu argued back. Kendra wondered if maybe she really was okay. These days it didn't seem like it.

"This is her brother we are talking about! She's too close to him to continue on this mission! She should wait back home at Fablehaven," Trask backed Elise up. Tanu immediately started protesting and Trask and Elise fought right back, soon it was just a loud mixture of angry voices. Kendra felt her heart start to speed up and tears prick at her eyes.

'Ridiculous. Crying over a stupid fight you aren't even in,' Kendra thought, willing herself to calm down. But the arguing continued at an even louder volume after Elise suggested Kendra wasn't skilled enough to pull off the mission.

It hurt to be doubted but she knew they just didn't want her to get killed or captured. The only other silent one in the room was Warren. He had originally started arguing with Elise and Trask about letting Kendra decide what she wants to do. But they called him insane and Tanu had even pointed out that her age was below the consent line, so she shouldn't be making decisions.

Warren looked over at her just then and Kendra assumed he noticed she was upset because he pushed off the wall he was leaning on and walked over to where she was standing.

"You okay?" He muttered once he was close enough, placing a hand on her back and looking at her with concern. Kendra opened her mouth to reply, but her voice caught and she found herself on the verge of tears again. She snapped her mouth shut and shook her head, biting her lip to keep herself from sobbing.

Warren sighed and put his arms around her protectively, Kendra latched on to him still trying to keep herself in control before aiming his eyes on the fighting group. "Hey, guys. Guys. Guys!"

He was talking loud but the others were louder and didn't hear him or pay him any attention. Warren sighed, glanced down at Kendra, put his hands over her ears and then turned back to the group. "Shut the _fuck_ up!"

Even with Warren's hands over her ears, Kendra could hear him scream at the other four. Silence reigned and there was a tense moment where no one moved or said anything. Kendra's heart squeezed and she couldn't stop the small sob from escaping her.

All eyes went to her and she saw the regret in the three adults faces when they noticed she was crying. Kendra couldn't take them looking at him at the moment so she turned and buried her face in Warren's chest, trying desperately to ignore the others.

"Can you guys get yourselves together? I know everyone has an opinion but there is no reason you should be having a screaming match over something _that is up to Kendra,"_ Warren said, disapproval painting his voice. Kendra hiccuped and squeezed her arms tighter around Warren.

She heard him continue to talk to the others and they responded back, voices much softer.

Her mind kept going back to Seth who had been captured, how they had to rescue him, how she was torn between going or staying. On one hand, her older sister side screamed that she should go and save her little brother and make sure he was okay.

But the side of her that was scared, the side that was sensitive and hesitant and soft, said not to go. To stay home and let the adults save him and stay safe. To not run into danger, to not risk her life or her freedom just yet. She should stay at Fablehaven, ready to welcome him back home.

She was already so torn up inside, to have the people she looked up to, the people she turned to for help when she didn't know what to do, to be arguing about the very thing she was torn on...it was too much.

"Kendra?" Warren's voice broke through her train of thought. He gently unhooked her arms then crouched down, looking up at her. "Hey, what do you think?"

Kendra wasn't sure what he was exactly asking her since she missed the last few moments of conversation. "What do you mean?" She asked softly, breath stuttering as she took a few deep breaths in an effort to calm down.

"What do you want to do?" Warren explained, hands on her arms and eyes scanning her face in concern. Kendra shook her head and bit her lip so hard she tasted blood. She shut her eyes for a moment and opened them as more tears fell. Warren wiped them away, beating her to the punch. Kendra pressed her hands to her face, fingers spread over her eyes, still slightly shaking her head.

"I don't know," She whispered, a sob escaping her again. She couldn't make a decision at the moment, she needed time. "Not now...I can't...I-"

Kendra broke off, slumping with her head in her hands. A headache was forming and stomach was doing so many flips that she felt nauseous. She dropped her hands and Warren caught them nodding. He stood and put an arm around her again.

"Okay, why don't we go back to your room and you can take a nap okay. You need some rest before thinking about this any more," He quietly said to her. Kendra could only nod, refusing to look at the others. Warren said goodbye to the rest of the team and followed her out of the hotel room.

They were staying at a hotel close to Fablehaven while Grandpa had some guests over, trying to figure out the best way to save Seth. Grandpa hadn't wanted Kendra and the others to be seen by the guests and he refused to tell them why, so they booked a few hotel rooms.

Warren opened the door to his and Kendra's room with a key. He was assigned with the task to protect her while they are outside the walls of Fablehaven since the Sphinx has the Occulus there was no telling if he would see them at the hotel and send Society members to ambush them.

"Do you need anything?" Warren asked her, throwing his shoes over by his bed. Kendra thought about this for a second, what did she need? Emotion welled up inside her.

"I need Seth back home," She sobbed, fully breaking down now.

"Oh, Kens…" Warren said coming to hug her again. "We will get him back, I promise. You should take a nap. You are overtired and stressed and it's tearing you up. Get a few hours of sleep."

"I-I don't want to sleep."

"Why is that?"

"I keep getting these h-horrible nightmares, I-I don't want to see Seth d-d-dead again," Kendra felt like someone was squeezing her heart until it burst. Warren rubbed her back soothingly and sighed.

"You have to sleep, Kens," He began gently pushing her towards the bed. "It's not healthy to stay awake for so long. I know you haven't slept the past two days at all. I heard you walking around the house late at night."

Kendra sighed, caught. She had been avoiding sleep as best she could since Seth's capture. The first night she had a nightmare about Seth dying, an arrow sticking out of his stomach and blood all over. She had woken up crying.

"But-"

"No, buts. Common, get in the bed, it's nap time," Warren said firmly. Kendra sighed again and did as she was told, climbing into the hotel bed and sliding under the covers. Warren seemed content that she was in bed and walked over to the desk picking up his phone, sitting in the desk chair.

Kendra's eyes roamed the room, trying to think of a way to get out of this nap. She could say she was hungry...but Warren might make her nap after eating and then she would be right back where she started. She could say she didn't feel good...but then Warren could say a nap would make it better.

"Doesn't look like you are sleeping, missy," Warren scolded lightly. Kendra's eyes snapped back to him. "Don't think you can figure out an excuse to not sleep."

"How did you know I was thinking that?" Kendra asked astonished. Warren chuckled, getting up and walking over to her bed before flopping himself down next to her.

"I told you before, I speak Kendra. You are so easy to read, you would be bad at poker," He said, looking through his phone. Kendra sighed, he was obviously not going to let her out of this nap so she rolled on her side and tried to get comfortable.

She stared at the alarm clock on the hotel's nightstand, watching as the minutes ticked on by. Soon, the fact she was exhausted coupled with her boredom, she drifted off into sleep.

 _Lightning flashed as she heard screaming from somewhere. She looked down and saw red. Red everywhere. Seth was bleeding out in front of her._

" _Kendra. Help me." He croaked out, blood leaking out of the side of his mouth._

" _I don't know how!" She cried, pressing her hands to the wound, but another opened up just to the right of her hands. More and more and more blood poured from Seth's body, Kendra was struggling to stop it but it was no use._

 _Seth was dead. Gone._

"Kendra!"

 _Kendra screamed as thunder boomed, she saw her loved ones fighting horrible monsters, fights that one by one they lost. Lightning flashed again, illuminating the hulking figure of Navarog._

"Kendra, wake up!"

 _Fire blasted towards her, and Kendra only had a split second to close her eyes before-_

"Kendra!"

Kendra bolted upright, panting and feeling utterly terrified. She felts hands on her shoulders and looked over to see Warren's worried face. She clutched her heart, trying to calm it's erratic beating and flopped back down on the pillows.

"Nightmare?" Warren asked, sitting cross-legged on the bed. She nodded. "Wanna talk about it?" She shook her head.

Warren sighed and poked her leg. Kendra frowned at him. He poked her leg again. "What are you doing?" She asked him. Another poke. "Warren," Poke. "Warren stop," Yet again, another poke.

Kendra curled her legs away but Warren just reached over and poked her hip. "Warren! What are you _doing?_ "

"I'm annoying you until you tell me about the nightmare," He said, poking her yet again. Kendra sighed and threw her arms over her eyes. Warren poked her again.

"Fine! I'll tell you! Just stop poking me!" Kendra exclaimed. Warren poked her one last time with a cheeky grin. "You're impossible."

"So I've been told. Now, you were saying?" Warren responded. Kendra stared up at the ceiling, the nightmare flashing back into her mind.

"It was the same dream as always. Seth died, everyone died, Navarog showed up and killed me and then I woke up," Kendra recited, feeling drained of emotion. "Before you ask, yes Navarog still bothers me, yes I know he is dead and can't hurt me, no that doesn't help."

"I get it. Being cornered by a dragon so evil they gave him the name 'Demon Prince' will probably leave a scar. I'm more concerned about the whole Seth and everyone dying part," Warren said, leaning back on his hands.

"What about it?"

"Why are you suddenly so scared of everyone dying?"

"If you haven't noticed, people keep dying. My brother was shot with an arrow," Kendra didn't want to talk about this anymore.

"But he lived, you know that," Warren said patiently. Kendra nodded, not willing to fight him on that.

"I know. I'm just worried," She mumbled. Warren sighed and moved over to sit next to her. He put his arm around her, letting her head rest on his shoulder. Kendra felt so utterly drained. She appreciated this act of comfort but it didn't ease any weight off her shoulders.

"Have you thought about what you want to do?" Warren asked.

"I'm going. I have too," Kendra said, she didn't want to be in danger, she didn't want to risk her freedom and the thought of being caught scared her. But finding Seth, rescuing him and bringing him home was worth the risk.

"Okay then. Trask and Elise will have to suck it up. I think you have proved yourself many times to be capable of more than you should be. It's ridiculous they don't throw a fit about bringing you into a vault but a rescue mission is insane to suggest," Warren said, a bite of bitterness sneaking into his voice.

"It's because Seth got captured. They feel guilty and are more paranoid about my involvement now," Kendra said, Warren seemed to pause.

"You...you really are a smart kid. I didn't even think of that," He admitted.

"I notice more than people seem to think."

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

"Elise is torn up about Mara's capture because she's in love with her," Kendra said, smiling at him.

"What?" Warren gasped. "No freaking way. You're making that up."

"It's the truth! She even asked Trask if she could take the translocator, grab Mara and get out that day! Even though Trask had barely escaped with Tanu!" she insisted. Kendra had noticed the way the two had interacted on the mission and pieced it together.

"But in _love_ with her? Really?"

"Okay, maybe it isn't love yet. But she definitely likes her," Warren hummed leaning his head back against the headboard. He was silent for a moment and Kendra could practically hear him thinking.

"What?"

"Hm?"

"You're thinking so loud my ears hurt," Kendra explained. "What are you thinking?"

Warren regarded her for a moment before caving. "I was just wondering what else you may have noticed that's all. I've always known you were observant but I guess I underestimated just how observant you are."

"There's something you are wondering if I realized, isn't there?" Kendra asked him. He nodded after a brief hesitation and she thought about what it could be but turned up blank. "What is it?"

"Shouldn't you know, oh great one?" he snorted. "Maybe I shouldn't tell you if you haven't figured it out yet."

Kendra pouted at him, giving him her best puppy dog eyes. "Are you going to _hide_ something from me, Warren? I thought we told each other everything."

"Oh, come on! Now that's just playing dirty. You know I can't say no to puppy dog eyes, I can't believe my own cousin is using my weakness against me! With a guilt trip might I add!" he exclaimed, acting outraged, but he was smiling.

"I don't know what you are talking about, I'm just hoping _my_ own cousin tells me what he is hiding from me. I'm completely innocent!" she batted her eyelashes, keeping the pout on her face. Kendra could tell he was cracking and resisted a smirk.

"If you're innocent, I'm a unicorn," Warren grumbled, causing her to laugh.

"Tell me! Please?" she begged, actually really curious to see what it was that was on his mind. "I was honest with you! I told you about the nightmare, now it's your turn in the hot seat."

Warren sighed and ran a hand down his face. "Fine! I'm not going into specifics but maybe you telling me about Elise made me think of someone else who might like someone else."

"Oh, you mean you and Vanessa?" Kendra asked. Warren blinked down at her.

"You are...something else."

Kendra gasped softly, feeling a smile creep onto her face. "I was right? You like her?"

"I wouldn't go that far. We just...have a past that's all. And now, she's a traitor locked up in the Quiet Box, I don't see our relationship being patched up together anytime soon," Warren explained, but she could tell he was downplaying his feelings. She wondered what this past was and how long ago it had occurred but she didn't ask. Kendra didn't want to pry.

Instead, she let it drop with a simple 'huh', laying her head back on his shoulder. She felt him relax when he realized she wasn't going to push it. They sat there for a while in silence until they heard a knock at their door and Warren got up to answer it.

Kendra heard him greet whoever was there and a second later Tanu, Trask, and Elise came into her line of vision. Tanu sat at the edge of her bed, giving her a smile.

"Hey there, K. Did you reach a decision?" he asked her. Kendra glanced at Warren, who nodded.

"I'm gonna go. He's my brother and he needs me. Even if I end up hurt or captured, I'd rather try than wait at home and not do anything," she said softly, eyes shifting to Trask and Elise. Surprisingly, the two didn't argue.

Elise sat down next to her and put an arm around her. "Then we will do our best to keep you safe and get Seth back home. Okay?"

"Okay."

Kendra still felt nervous about the mission. Her stomach flipped at the thought of them all being captured but she knew it was a risk she was willing to take for Seth. She kept herself determined and ready for the mission by thinking of being able to hug Seth and tell him she loved him. Of having him back home. Of having him safe. She hated the thought of him all alone while she was here being comforted by friends and family but as she sat there with them, she felt at peace.

If only for the moment.

* * *

+1.

Warren Burgess had seen many impossibly crazy things in his lifetime. He even came to the conclusion that nothing would surprise him. But he was so, so, wrong.

Kendra and Seth were caretakers of Wrymroost. Only now, Seth was kidnapped, so Kendra was running the show alone. Impossibly crazy. The only thing that wasn't entirely surprising to him was that Kendra was killing it, sure she was super stressed to the point it was unhealthy, but as far as doing her job as caretaker correctly, she was killing it.

Not everyone was happy about it, though.

"Where is the caretaker? Shouldn't the child be punctual at the very least?" an alcetaur with reddish fur, Byron complained for the fourth time in five minutes.

"Okay, look," Warren stood and said, having finally had enough. "Kendra is very busy. There was no set time to this meeting so she is not technically late, she will get here when she gets here. So just sit down and stop whining."

Byron's eye twitched as he seethed, he glared at Warren and trotted across the room to get in Warren's face. Warren stood his ground as the angered creature drew close, one hand straying to the sword at his belt just in case.

"And who are you? You are nobody but a puny human I could squash in a second. Your ego is far too big for someone who has done nothing but follow the caretaker around like a lap dog. Perhaps a babysitter at best."

" _Excuse me?"_ came a voice from the doorway. Warren and Byron turned their heads to see Kendra standing there, looking _very_ pissed.

"This imbecile-" Byron started but didn't get very far in insulting Warren again before Kendra interrupted him.

"Don't you even dare, Byron," Kendra strode across the room towards them, strides graceful but filled to the brim with power. "You had best retract your words or you won't like the consequences."

Kendra had drawn up to them now, Byron stood at least three full heads taller than her but she glared up at him without hesitation. Byron scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Retract my words? Please. I stand by with what I said. He has no business telling me what I can complain about and what I can't."

It was Kendra's turn to scoff. "That's what this is about? Did he tell you to stop complaining? Well, then I stand with him. You do complain too much, it's tiring."

"Watch your tongue, little girl."

"I will not," Kendra stepped even closer, her voice dropped down to a dangerous mutter. "Do you forget who I am?"

Warren felt like he should step in, but watching Kendra destroy this asshole alcetaur all by her own would be more rewarding than any insult he could dream up. Byron seemed to falter for a second before hardening again.

"I am sick of taking orders from a child, you a foolish and naive just like your puppy over here," Byron growled, jerking a thumb towards Warren. Kendra's eyes narrowed and her nostrils flared as she exhaled sharply.

"Tread carefully, Byron. I won't stand here and let you insult Warren."

Byron leaned down so he was in Kendra's face. "Tread carefully? I'll tread right over his dead body if I so wished, the world would thank me for getting rid of the incompetent nuisance."

Ouch.

Warren raised his eyebrows, this guy was really asking for it. Kendra's face went blank and she tilted her chin up slightly as she took in what he had just said. This was not going to be good...at least not for Byron.

"Instead of insulting you - which would have been fun since there is _so_ much to make fun of - let me tell you a bit about Warren. He is a heroic, selfless, kind, funny, caring, and commendable man. He has done more for this world than you will ever even dream of doing."

When Byron went to scoff at that, Kendra pressed on. "Did you do anything to fight against the opening of the demon prison? Did you go on numerous dangerous missions and survive? Did you fight at the battle of Zzyzx? No? Didn't think so."

"See, that's who Warren is. You can try and try but you will never get close to his accomplishments. So if I were you I would beg for forgiveness from him because he has fought bigger and worse creatures and won... _you_ are nothing to him."

Kendra finished her speech, green eyes flashing with an unspoken threat. Warren felt his heart swell with pride and honor, her words had truly touched him. The way she saw him was clear by the way she spoke of him just now and it made Warren a bit misty eyed.

Byron looked properly torn between anger and astonishment. It was silent for a moment before the alcetaur practically exploded. "I can't believe this! You think you can get away with talking to me like this?! You are a _child_ learn your place!"

Kendra smirked, stepping even closer to Byron as she tapped her finger against the medallion that hung from her neck. "My place? Is caretaker. I am above you, so I can talk to you however I want."

"Making you caretaker was the biggest mistake of this preserve."

"The taurans have already shamed themselves into living with the haunts and shades. If you wish to join them, I will have no issue sending you there," Warren knew the threat Kendra just made would scare Byron. Living there would be a life on the run.

Byron looked shaken and he took a step back. "All this, for him?"

"He is ten times the man you will ever be, so watch your tongue before I cut it out," Kendra was losing patience, Warren could see it. The more this fight dragged on the more she looked ready to load Byron's face with three hundred arrows.

"You wanna play that, little girl?" Byron couldn't seem to give it up, his pride was on the line now. Like centaurs, his pride was everything to him.

Kendra clenched her hand into a fist. "Call me little girl one more time and your next problem will be figuring out how to walk with only three legs."

"I'm more dangerous than you know," Byron was losing the fight, he stepped back into her space once more, desperately trying to scare Kendra into submission. Kendra stood her ground and stared him right in the eye.

"I am not afraid of you," she spoke strongly, each word sounding like a nail in Byron's coffin. He had dug himself a grave and now he must lie in it. Warren bit back a grin at the sight of his tiny, tiny, younger cousin, staring up at a hulking alcetaur and making him her bitch.

Kendra wasn't done.

"You have been demoted to cleaning duty, go clean the griffins stables. Top to bottom. When you are done report back to me for your next task."

Byron didn't move.

" _Now. That is an order from your caretaker."_

Embarrassed and pride wounded, Byron stalked out of the room, defeated. Kendra watched him leave, glare never dropping until the door slammed shut and it was only her and Warren left. She turned to him, all the fierceness from seconds ago melted off her face, leaving behind the wide-eyed, innocent look she was known for.

"Warr? You okay? I'm so sorry he said that stuff about you," she fussed, even her voice had lost the hard edge, replaced with a soft, caring tone.

Warren finally let the grin he had been fighting back blossom over his face as he laughed shortly. "Am I okay? I am _great_. That was amazing, Kens!"

He picked her up into a hug and spun her around, relishing in the peals of laughter it elicited from her. She still got so happy over the smallest things, like being spun around, just like a little kid. It was such a stark contrast to the powerful young women he saw just now.

"I was just so mad he said those nasty things about you," she explained once he set her down. "Then he was challenging me and I couldn't back down then. I would never get respect around here if I had."

"There's no need to explain yourself, Kendra. You did well, amazingly well. I honestly couldn't believe it at first! It was like the rise of a goddess!"

Kendra rolled her eyes with a laugh but Warren ignored her reaction and continued. "The way you spoke about me...it really moved me. You spoke of me so highly and it meant the world to me. Thank you."

"Of course, Warr," she gave him another hug which he gladly returned. "You're the best protector I could ever ask for, it's only fair I protect you sometimes, right?"

Warren's heart melted at Kendra's words coupled with her pulling back and blinking up at him with those big green eyes and wide smile. It wasn't fair, she had him wrapped around her little finger.

"Right, darling. Thanks for being _my_ protector this time."

"What is it you say when I try to thank you? Hm...Oh yeah," Kendra gave him a finger gun and wink. "Don't mention it, shortstop!"

Warren laughed softly, her impression was spot on he wasn't going to lie. As they went on to do what they were in that room to do, which was strategize their next move in the war, Warren couldn't help but notice how much Kendra had grown, how much she had learned, and how well she slipped into the role of caretaker.

He knew it wasn't easy for her. She was stressed beyond belief, he could tell she wasn't getting sleep and she had lost weight from the combination of exhaustion, stress, and not having the time to have a proper meal. Warren had gathered all this information while he had been here for the last four weeks.

But, she still thrived as caretaker. He didn't think Kendra would ever want to keep this job or say she even liked it, but no one could truly say she was bad at it. Warren was so proud of his little cousin. She had been handed shitty cards and then won the game with them.

"Warr? Paying attention?" Kendra's voice snapped him out his thoughts.

"Uh, no. What were we talking about again?" he honestly answered, running a hand through his hair.

Kendra laughed. "What's on your mind?"

"Just how proud I am of you."

Kendra looked surprised before grinning. "Well, _I'm_ pretty proud of _you._ "

Warren thought it was impossibly crazy about how much he treasured Kendra. She was a little sister to him, not a second cousin. A best friend, not just the person he is assigned to protect. And if he is going to be completely honest…

Kendra is impossibly crazy at being an amazing, strong, and badass, young girl.

* * *

 **A/N: What a ride folks, there will be more to this series of 5 _ so be on the lookout, the next chapter is coming up sooner than you think! Thanks for reading! XOXO**


	2. 5 Times Dale Had A Deep Talk With Kendra

**A/N: The title is a little stupid but I wasn't sure how to describe this really other than times when Dale and Kendra have meaningful conversations. But this is for AerinM! I love you so so so so so so so so so so much and I hope you like this!**

* * *

1.

Dale Burgess had had a crazy two weeks.

First, the two Sorenson siblings had arrived. Of course, then they had known nothing about magic or even that there were dangerous animals in the woods surrounding them. Dale had bit back an exasperated groan when he heard Stan tell them to stay out of the woods because there were _ticks._

What curious eleven year old was going to stay out of the woods because of ticks? Not Seth Sorenson it seemed because he broke the rule on the very first full day he was here. Dale had been exiting the barn to start his chore of bringing milk tins out when he noticed the kid slipping into the trees. He thought about stopping the kid but decided against it, the unbelief and shield over his eyes would be enough of a protection.

Dale sighed. "We have a second Warren on our hands."

The thought of his brother made him pause, he became distracted while putting out the milk tins, which he paid for by being caught red-handed by Kendra. After a brief conversation and a few lies, she promised to keep his fake secret about the milk.

As she turned to go, Dale couldn't help himself. "You seen your brother hereabout?"

"I think he's in the house."

"That so?" he resisted a smile.

Kendra shrugged. "Maybe."

Now, if Dale had to bet, he would bet that she knew just where Seth was. He didn't grow up as the older sibling of a troublemaker without being to recognize someone who was in the same position. Not that he blamed her for covering his back, he was sure she wouldn't have been able to stop her younger brother so why should she take even a little of the blame for simply not ringing the alarm.

Next thing Dale knew, the kids had learned the secret of the magical world. It felt nice not having to lie and hide things anymore, plus Dale now got to have Hugo back doing his full job and that lifted a lot of responsibilities off Dale's shoulder. But before they knew it, it was Midsummer's Eve.

He had been sitting downstairs with Stan and Lena when they heard a commotion coming from the attic, coupled with yelling and the unmistakable sound of creatures snarling. Dale bolted out of his seat, grabbing the shotgun off the table, Stan made to follow him.

"No, stay down here and get ready. I'm gonna have to lead them down here and out of the attic so they can shut the door and be safe!" he called while racing as fast as he could to the attic. He had burst through the door with the shotgun leveled at the first disgusting monster he saw.

He risked a glance to where he saw Seth and Kendra huddled on one of the beds. Seth looked terribly guilty and had tears streaming down his face and Kendra looked utterly terrified. "You kids stay put no matter what!"

He began to lead the creatures out of the attic and down the stairs, not having to fire the shotgun until the hallway. "Shut the door and stay put!"

The next few minutes were a blur of shotgun blasts and revolting monsters coming at him. Eventually, he had joined Stan and Lena in the kitchen who both joined the fight, only for one of the creatures to open the door, leading in more monsters who overpowered them and dragged them outside.

Dale remembers thinking that this was it, this was the end of his life. He saw a bright flash and raised his arms protectively then...nothing.

He had positively no memories until all of a sudden he was surrounded by large fairies helping him to his feet. He looked around and saw Kendra standing there. "What's going on? Where's Stan?"

"The fairies healed you," Kendra had told him. "Grandpa and the others are still in trouble. But I think these fairies will help us."

Dale watched baffled while Kendra basically called the fairies to war, then flew off with them to...man if he knew. He was left to pace and wonder where they would have gone, what had happened, and who was behind all this. He guessed he would get his answer soon, provided they did come back.

Just as he was beginning to get worried, he noticed figures flying towards the yard and felt relief wash over him as he recognized Stan and...wait, was that Ruth? As they got closer he could see that, yes, indeed that was Ruth. He rushed towards them as they were being set down by fairies.

"Now, I've seen everything," he said before giving Ruth a tight hug. She had been turned into a chicken trying to find a cure for Warren, something that he had been very guilty about. He released her smiling wide.

Turning, he saw that Kendra was surrounded by the fairies who were one by one kissing her face and being transformed back into miniature form. Once the fairies were done, Kendra swayed heavily and fell backward on the grass.

He and Stan helped her to her feet. Stan shook his head. "I would wager this young lady has quite the story to tell. And I would also wager that now is not the time. Hugo, attend to your labors."

Dale began to help Kendra into the house. He was painfully curious about what in the hell had transpired here, what had happened to him, how Ruth was back, how did the fairies get so big, how come they were listening to Kendra, and why did kissing Kendra's face bring them back to miniature size?

But, he knew the one person that had all the answers to all of those questions was also the one that was falling asleep by the second. He had his hands on her shoulders, guiding her into the house and to the stairs, but just as they reached them, Kendra's knees gave out.

He caught her easily and started carrying her up to her bed. When Kendra and Seth had first arrived at Fablehaven, while Dale knew they were second cousins, he wasn't sure if he would be seeing much of them after their stay. Even after they discovered the secret he had his doubts.

Now, as he helped Stan tuck Kendra into bed, he was beginning to think otherwise.

* * *

Dale looked up as Kendra sat down next to him on the porch swing. "Hey kid, aren't your parents coming soon?"

"Yup, they just called and said they were an hour away. I'm all packed and everything so, I have nothing I need to do."

"Ah, I see. And sitting here with me was the most interesting thing you could think of?" Kendra didn't smile like he thought she would, he peered at her for a moment. "What's up?"

She looked over at him, eyebrows drawn together. "Does this...magical world ever bother you? Like do you ever just feel overwhelmed?"

"Well, sometimes yes. Like this past week? Definitely the most overwhelmed I've been in a while," he admitted, chuckling. "But, usually it's not that crazy, I guess you guys really know how to make an entrance to the magical world, huh?"

"Yeah, that's another thing..."

"What?"

Kendra sighed and gestured to herself. "The whole, I can see without milk thing. Who knows what the fairies did to me and what the repercussions will be? I only just found out about this entire world and now I'm...something."

"I can't say I know much about what the fairies did to you, never even knew they could be called to war, but here you are. I wouldn't worry too much though, be careful with your eyes being opened of course, but don't lose sleep over it," Dale said, to be honest, he had been dumbfounded when he was told she no longer needed milk to see the magical creatures. He had never heard such a thing in all his years.

Kendra was truly proving herself to be a true game-changer in the magical world.

Beside him, she sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "I guess, but I'm not sure I'll be able to handle it if things are like how this last week was all the time. It was so crazy and scary and just...I don't know..."

"I know this world can be anxiety-inducing, especially after what you've seen and been through this past week, but try not to let it get into your head too much. Not saying things like this week won't ever happen again, because in this world you never know, but I will say that if stuff happens we will deal with it the best we can."

"We almost lost this time."

"Good thing we had you then!"

Finally, Kendra smiled. She was quiet for a minute before turning to him one last time. "Are you sure things aren't always this...crazy?"

"I'd love to say that it will never happen again," he started. "But, as I said, you can never know with this world. There are dangerous creatures, dangerous people, things happen."

"Like the Society?"

"I don't think you have to worry about those guys. You're young, you will probably be kept out of that side of the magic world. At least I hope you are, that's a problem you would be happy to be kept away from."

A crash was heard from inside the house and Kendra sighed. "Seems like I need to go see what Seth did this time," she stood and walked to the door before turning back towards him and smiling. "Thanks for talking, Dale. It really helped."

"Of course," Dale grinned. "Anytime you need help with out of control younger brothers, I have some experience there as well."

"I'll have to keep that in mind," she laughed. Another crash was heard and she dropped her head back in exasperation as Dale chuckled. "He never stops. I better get in there, see ya!"

She waved before heading inside. Dale heard her yell Seth's name and then Seth yelling back, then Kendra's laugh was heard and he smiled. It reminded him of Warren and himself. Once again, he thought of what could have been if he had just thought to ask the fairies to heal his brother...but no matter. What's done is done.

He'll find another way. There had to be a way to heal Warren out there somewhere.

Inside, the Sorenson siblings were heard laughing loudly.

* * *

2.

Warren was awake.

 _Warren was awake._

Dale honestly felt like he could walk on air he was so damn happy. Seth had pulled the nail out of the revenant and the action had awoken his brother, at long last. When he was told that part of the story he hadn't been able to resist hugging the little guy.

Seth had complained and told him to not get too sappy but when Dale had pulled away he could see Seth was secretly proud of himself.

Of course, Warren had run into danger the second he was awake. Dale hadn't let Tanu and Coulter talk him out of going into the vault, sure he wasn't a seasoned adventurer but if his brother was in there he was going in to help him.

Then the stupid hobgoblin broke his legs. Sure, Dale had killed him in retaliation with a simple switchblade to the throat, but he still couldn't go on to help Warren, which pissed him off. Tanu and Coulter had promised to bring him back but it didn't ease his worries.

He couldn't even pace around, all he could do was sit there and wait and wait and wait and wait. It had to be about thirty minutes before he heard voices coming up towards the room. He had watched as Tanu lead Vanessa into the room, then Coulter and Kendra came through the door then-

 _Warren._

He had shouted as his brother grinned and knelt next to him to hug him. Dale would never forget the feeling of that moment. Being able to hug Warren and have him hug back, in total control of his mind and body, was everything to Dale and tears stung his eyes.

Finally, Warren had moved away. Behind him, Kendra moved forward with a strange cat teapot and proceeded to pour sand over his legs. Dale's eyes had widened as he felt his legs heal. He stood and had wiped at his eyes, proclaiming he had now officially seen everything. For real this time.

A day later he had been told that the same teapot had saved Warren's life, thanks to Kendra. Naturally, he had to find the young girl and thank her. It took him a few days to have the time to talk to her, but eventually, he had an easy chore day so around noon he hunted her down.

The search leads him to the attic, where she was sitting in bed reading a book. "Hey, kid."

Kendra looked up from the book and smiled at him. "Hi, Dale."

"You know, I was kinda surprised you didn't fall asleep for three days after you came out of the inverted tower."

Kendra laughed and shook her head. "I was too, to be honest. At that point, I had been awake for days because I had been afraid to fall asleep since you know, Vanessa. So, I certainly had felt tired enough."

"I actually wanted to talk to you about the Inverted Tower," he started and sat down on the edge of her bed. "I heard you had a role in making sure Warren got out of there alive. Heard he had been pretty banged up."

Kendra sobered and closed her book. "Banged up makes it sound like bruises or scrapes, a severe understatement. How much did they tell you?"

"You mean did they tell me he broke all the bones in his body, got stabbed, poisoned, and drowned in acid? Don't worry, I know. I also know you healed all those wounds with the artifact. He would have died if you weren't there, Kendra."

"It was more my fairy magic than myself."

"No, it was also you being brave enough to go through that vault with him so that you made it to that artifact and you were there to charge it. An action that saved his life," he shot down her downplaying. "Besides, even if you throw all that aside, you made sure he wasn't alone. You kept him company at the very least, saved his life at the very most."

Dale looked her in the eyes seriously. "Thank you, Kendra. I said this to your brother, and I'm saying it to you. Seth brought him back, and you made sure he stayed back. You two brought him back to me and I am eternally thankful. I can't express how much it means to me."

"Dale," Kendra's eyes had misted over a little. "Of course. You're welcome, but you don't need to thank me. I'm just glad he came back, you have a lot more light in your eyes now."

He reached over and pulled the small girl into a hug. "I really do owe you one."

"No, no you don't"

Dale squeezed her tight one last time before letting go. "I'll let you get back to your book now, okay? Your grandfather said dinner is in fifteen, just so you know."

Kendra nodded and he turned to walk out the door. Then, he heard Kendra call his name and he turned around again questioningly.

"I don't know the feeling on quite the scale that you do, but for the days I thought Seth was gone, I was miserable. When I saw him alive, it was honestly indescribable. I know it's not the same, but...to some extent, I understand."

With that she turned back to her book, leaving Dale to smile and leave the attic. He thought back to when he had assumed he would never see Kendra and Seth again.

Little did he know: they would give him the best present anyone had ever given him.

* * *

3.

Dale has retired the saying 'now I have seen everything'. Because he knows that at some point in his life he will be proven wrong, yet again.

Especially with the Sorenson siblings around.

He has gotten used to the two kids exceeding the limits, proving to him time and time again to not underestimate children. This time, he had been reduced to a cold, shadow person and trapped in the middle of the woods with his family - also shadows - while Kendra and Seth teamed up with Lena and Patton Burgess of all people to stop Kurisock and his wispy witch ghost girlfriend or whatever she was.

They had succeeded...but at a cost. Lena had lost her life in the fight, it had gutted him to hear it. He had lived with her for years, she was almost like an aunt to him. She had helped search for a cure for Warren, she had always brought him bottles of water when he was out doing his chores, she had even helped take care of Warren when he was in the catatonic state.

She was family. Dale had been sad when she had been returned to the pond but at least she was _alive_. Now, she was truly gone. He tried to comfort himself by reminding himself at least everyone else survived and the preserve wasn't in danger any more thanks to her, but it did little to ease his heavy heart.

But, there were two people especially going through the wringer over Lena's death. Not that they all weren't sad, quite the opposite, but the loss hit two people harder than the others: Patton and Kendra.

It was quite the experience meeting Patton, but it was bittersweet. The man was obviously heartbroken but had put on a brave face to meet them all before retiring to a guest room to cry. Dale only knew this because Patton had flat out told them he what he was going to do.

Dale knew the man would be okay, he would go back to his own time and have Lena back, Kendra however...she has lost Lena for good. To top it all off, she had been the one to toss Lena the pebble and now she was raking herself over the coals, blaming herself for Lena's death.

They had been taking turns trying to cheer her up, Tanu had returned a few hours ago with a shake of his head. He was the fifth person to try and Dale decided to go next so up to the attic he went.

Pushing the door open, he finds Kendra laying on the floor staring up at the ceiling. Oh, no. This has gone too far and ends now. "Okay, get up. Let's go."

Kendra slowly lifted her head, stared at him for a few seconds then dropped her head to the ground. Dale sighed and walked over to her, nudging her hip with his foot.

"Come on. Get off the floor, kid. I won't tell you again," he was using the voice he used to use when Warren wasn't listening. He had never imagined he would use it again, let alone on Kendra. To his surprise, Kendra didn't react, didn't listen.

The obedient kid. Not listening.

"Alright then, I warned you," he shrugged before bending over and hauling Kendra up off the floor and over his shoulder. He started carrying her out of the room and down the stairs.

"Put me down."

Dale would be lying if Kendra's flat words in response to this didn't worry him. This wasn't like her. "No, you need fresh air, sunshine and all that."

"I don't want to go outside, put me down," she said again in the same emotionless tone. Dale reached the ground floor and headed towards the door leading to the garden.

"This isn't an option, you are going outside. I don't care if you don't want to."

With that, he pushed open the back door and deposited Kendra on the porch swing. "There, I was outside, can I go back in now?"

"No."

Kendra huffed and leaned back on the swing. Dale took a seat next to her and just as he was about to talk Kendra interrupted him.

"I know what you are going to say, it wasn't your fault, Lena wouldn't want you to blame yourself, cheer up, and all that. Spare me the speech because it isn't going to change the fact that I threw the stone to her which she then used and died. I was the butterfly that caused the hurricane and nothing can change that."

Her emotionless tone had melted as her rant went on, leaving behind a voice filled with hurt and guilt and it hurt Dale to hear that tone in such a young kid.

"Kendra, you threw the stone but that doesn't mean you _killed_ her. The butterfly flapping its wings so they can fly may have started the catalyst for the hurricane but they are not at fault," he reasoned. Kendra didn't answer, only stared out at the garden where fairies were fluttering about.

"Look. I'm not here to give you a big cheer up speech. I'm here to tell you to at _least_ try and live. Get out of bed, eat something, do some kind of activity besides laying on the floor staring at the ceiling. That isn't healthy, so if anything, try to be healthy."

Kendra sighed and looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I _am_ trying."

"No, Kendra. You know you aren't," Dale said softly, she slumped back against the swing and closed her eyes. "Giving up isn't an option, okay? Laying on the floor isn't trying, not eating isn't trying, turning your family away _isn't trying_. You have to make an effort no matter how hard it is."

"I know," Kendra whispered. "I know, okay. I already know that I'm failing so I don't need to be scolded about how much of a disappointment I am."

Dale sighed softly. "Kendra, you are _not_ a disappointment. I'm sorry, I'm not trying to scold you I promise, my intention here was to try to get through to you. Not to punish you, but to make you understand where we are coming from and why we are concerned."

"...I miss Lena."

"I do too, Kens. I do too," Dale leaned his head back on the swing with her. "I bet she would have known what to say to you."

"If she was here then we wouldn't be having the conversation."

"True, but still. She would know what to say."

Kendra was silent for a few moments as Dale rocked the swing lightly with his feet out of habit. "She used to tell me all these amazing stories of her adventures, and she had this thing with the rain."

Dale chuckled. "I remember how she used to sit out in the rain, I once caught her out here during a thunderstorm. She loved it."

Silence fell over them again as he got lost in his memories and he suspected Kendra did too. Eventually, he heard Kendra whisper something. "What was that?"

"I said, I'll try. But that doesn't change what I did. The doesn't change that I am still the butterfly that caused the hurricane and I am indirectly at fault," she said again a tad louder. Dale compressed his lips, he wanted to argue but decided against it.

"Well, it's a start."

Suddenly, it started raining and a yellow butterfly alighted on the porch railing.

* * *

4.

It had been a hard week for everyone.

Kendra had (supposedly) died. Most of the house had gone to her funeral, they had mourned her and tried to piece together what in the hell had happened and why. In the end, it turned out it was a stingbulb of all things and she was actually kidnapped.

So, a murder case turned into an abduction case. Dale had waited anxiously for news about the rescue attempt that was happening. Well, it was less of a rescue attempt and more of a search party. He tried to occupy his mind by doing his chores even though Stan had told him he didn't have to, but it wasn't helping much.

Eventually, he gave up and went inside. He might as well be anxious with everyone else. He found Stan, Ruth and even Seth in the study. Night was just falling and according to the tip Vanessa gave, they had a long wait before the search party even started.

"Dale," Stan greeted giving him a smile that fell flat. "Finally decided to join us, have you?"

Dale threw himself into the remaining chair with a sigh. "Yeah, figured misery loves company."

"It's gonna be a long night, I should go make something for us to eat," Stan said, standing and exiting the room. Dale glanced at Seth, the kid's knees were bouncing up and down, his knuckles were white from gripping the arms of the chair, and he looked ready to pass out from nerves.

"Hey, Seth, try and calm down man. Letting yourself get all worked up isn't going to help, take a breath," he spoke in a soft voice, trying to ease the young boy's mind but Seth just bolted up and began pacing.

"Aren't you nervous? Is it just me? My heart feels like it's gonna burst right out of my chest and my stomach is an Olympic gymnast apparently from all the flips it's doing and I keep thinking of what's gonna happen. I mean, what's gonna happen? Will they rescue her? Will she even be where Vanessa said? I mean how much can we trust Vanessa anyway? What if-"

"Seth! My goodness, breathe!" Tanu walked into the room and placed his large hands on Seth's shoulders gently, stopping the boy's pacing. "The search party isn't even out yet and you are a nervous wreck!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry...I just-" Seth cut off, eyes teary. Tanu sighed and drew him into a hug.

"Don't be sorry, my boy. It's only natural," Coulter waved a hand as he dragged a chair into the room. The old man sat down and folded his arms. "Feelings area bi-"

"Coulter," Ruth warned, speaking up for the first time.

"-scuit." Dale laughed at Coulter's improvisation and Tanu lead Seth back to his seat. Tanu left and then came back this time holding his own chair and a pack of cards.

Tanu set the chair next to Dale and sat down. "You know, my father used to say a pack of cards holds more games in it than a cupboard full of board games. So, here's a pack of cards, Stan is getting food, I say we play some old-fashioned card games to pass the time, huh?"

"No thanks, I feel wrong about playing games while Kendra could be….who knows," Seth murmured.

"Kendra would rather you play a few card games than sit there and drive yourself to a panic attack," Ruth reasoned with her grandson, her eyes studying Seth softly.

"Come on, kid. A game of cards won't hurt," Dale helped with the convincing. Seth looked up from his lap and sighed.

"Okay, I guess."

They waited in near silence, only small conversations that fell flat breaking it until Stan came back with a tray of food and snacks and drinks. "I didn't know what to make so I just grabbed...everything."

Dale resisted a smile at Stan's nervousness. They all grabbed something off the tray and soon a game of War was in play. The group wasted time playing anything from go fish, to rummy, to blackjack, and crazy eights.

They even had a tournament for the game bullshit - although Ruth insisted they call it bullcrap instead - and that had left the room rowdy with everyone watching each round with anticipation. Dale had eventually won, going up against Stan in the final round.

As they wrapped up the tournament, Dale glanced at the clock and felt his heart squeeze. It was 12:32. Vanessa had told the search party to be on the streets for midnight. The search party had started.

With a quick look around the room, he saw everyone looking at the clock as well. Stan sighed and sat down in his chair again. "Well, I guess now we wait."

Everyone sank down in their seats, silent. The next three hours the group sat there in total, anxious silence. They seemed to jump at the slightest sound, hoping it would be the telephone but it never was...until at 3:04 in the morning Stan's phone lit up.

Dale watched as Stan rushed to answer it. "Hello? Warren?"

Even though the phone wasn't on speaker, it was so silent in the room that everyone could hear the answer that came from the phone.

"Grandpa!"

Dale sucked in a huge breath, as did many of the others, they all could recognize Kendra's voice anywhere. Stan froze then started talking hurriedly. "Kendra! My dear lord, are you alright?"

They all heard an 'I'm okay' come from the phone. After hearing her voice the room descended into chaos.

"Are they in a safe place, who knows the Society could be looking for her."

"Where was she?"

"Stan, ask her if she's hurt!"

"Let me talk to her!"

Their voices overlapped as they frantically tried to get answers. Stan only humored one, Seth. He handed the phone to the boy who took it with shaking hands. "Kenny?! Is this you?!"

They all heard Kendra reply, asking if the stingbulb hurt Seth or anything. Seth answered her and a minute later Ruth took the phone. "Oh, Kendra dear we are so glad you are okay. Coulter, Dale, and Tanu send their love as well."

Dale smiled and sat forward in his seat as Ruth placed the phone on speaker so they all could speak to Kendra. Dale waited as Coulter warned Kendra to be on her guard unto Warren's voice cut in saying that Kendra was already shaken up and to not scare her more.

Tanu asked about her wellbeing and if she was hurt, thankfully she wasn't and she was holding up. Tanu talked to her for a few more minutes, the potions master was just a big softie who had just wanted to make sure she was truly alright, acting almost like a therapist.

Then, the phone was passed to him. He accepted it gingerly and took a deep breath before talking. "Hey there, Kens."

"Hi, Dale."

"You sure know how to give a guy a scare, huh?" he chuckled.

"Funny, Warren said the same thing," she said. He could hear how exhausted the poor girl was, it was late and she had just escaped from wherever her kidnappers had been holding her.

"Hey, Warren?" Dale said. When he got a 'yeah' in return from his brother he spoke up again. "You good?"

Kendra's fake death had hit Warren hard and Dale had no idea how the reunion would affect Warren. "I'm great, don't worry."

Dale was satisfied with his answer for now and glanced at Ruth who looked anxious to talk to her granddaughter. "I'm glad you're back, Kendra. I'm gonna hand the phone off to your grandmother before she rips my hand in half to get to it."

He got a light swat on the head for that as Kendra said a small 'bye Dale'. "Bye K."

With that, he handed the phone off. After a few more minutes of talking to her, Ruth ended it by reminded everyone that Kendra was probably exhausted and the phone call ended shortly. No one really slept that night, knowing that tomorrow Kendra would be back home.

Warren and Kendra would sleep a bit at the hotel before starting the thirteen-hour drive back to Fablehaven in the very early morning. Warren said that he plans to be there around 6 pm but to give them leeway for rest stops and food runs.

That day, the hours seem to tick by so slowly that Dale wanted to punch the clock. As 6 pm rolled around, Dale sat in the kitchen, listening for the telltale sign of a car on the gravel. The minutes ticked on and on and with every new minute, he grew more anxious. Tanu and Coulter had joined him at one point.

They listened to Seth playing football with the satyrs, Ruth and Stan were waiting out on the porch so they could open the gate for Warren and Kendra.

"So, the weather is nice," Tanu joked as the tension in the room grew thicker. Just after he spoke, they heard a car pulling up. The three men looked at each other before bolting in a very kid-like fashion to the window.

Dale watched as Warren's car pulled through the gate and into the driveway. It parked and Warren got out of the driver's side and stretched. As he did that, the passenger door opened Kendra popped out of it.

There was a beat, then the men booked it to the hallway to meet the two as they were coming in. Dale stood there with them, a moment later Stan joined them. Then, the knob turned and Warren opened the door and Kendra stepped through.

She had barely crossed the threshold when Seth came barreling down the hallway and enveloped her in a big hug.

"Woah," Kendra said. Dale turned to his brother while he gave the two siblings time to talk.

"How was the drive?"

Warren groaned. "Don't even want to think about it."

Dale laughed at his brother's misery.

"Hi Coulter," he heard Kendra say and he turned back to her to see Coulter hug her. Dale shot Warren a look, Coulter didn't give much affection out usually, but then again, Kendra had just risen from the dead.

He waited as Kendra hugged her grandparents and Tanu before finally stepping up and giving her a big hug as well. The fact that she was here and okay finally became a solid reality to him instead of feeling like a dream. "Welcome home kiddo."

"It's good to be back," she whispered.

* * *

Later that day, he found Kendra sitting on the same swing they had sat on last summer. He made his way outside, zipping up his coat. "Aren't you cold, kid?"

Kendra looked up at the sound of his voice and smiled. "Nah, it's not too bad."

He sat down next to her and looked out at the snow falling through the air. "Now I see why you're out here, that sure is a beautiful sight."

"Yeah," she sighed. "If it was a tad warmer it would be rain, you know?"

"I think we can count this as rain, don't you?"

"I bet Lena would."

Dale smiled. "I'm really glad you're okay, Kens. It was a hard week thinking you were dead, for all of us. Seeing you alive and okay...it's an early Christmas present."

"I'm sorry you all went through that Dale," Kendra said quietly. "To be honest, it's good to hear you say that. When I was there, Torina really got under my skin. She made me start to doubt…"

Kendra trailed off, seeming nervous. Dale angled his body towards her and regarded her questioningly. "Doubt what?" When Kendra didn't answer he tried again. "Kendra, you can tell me."

"Please don't take this the wrong way," she pleaded softly. When Dale nodded in agreement she continued. "She made me doubt whether you guys would...would miss me or not."

"Kendra Marie, of course, we would miss you, what in the world?"

"I know, it's stupid to think but...she just kept saying these awful things and the despair of thinking there was no escape coupled with the anxiety of being kidnapped got to me," Kendra explained quickly.

Dale was still heartbroken she would ever think that because it had to come from a place that already existed. He could picture small Kendra alone surrounded by cruel people believing that no one was looking for her, that no one missed her and it hurt him physically.

"You've had your doubts before haven't you?"

Kendra looked up at him. "What?"

"You've had your doubts about if we would miss you before, haven't you?"

"...I mean...I never truly believed them…"

So Dale was right, she had these thoughts before and Torina had fanned the flame. "I hope you know for sure that we would miss you more than we can express. Or do I need to go into detail about how everyone was affected?"

"No, you don't need-"

"Too late! Let's start with Seth, who barely spoke full sentences, he couldn't even play with the satyrs he was so upset, and the day we were waiting for news about your rescue he god damn had a near breakdown."

"Dale-"

"Your grandparents? Threw themselves into your murder case, I had to remind Stan to eat, to force Ruth to sleep and put down your case file, the felt guilty for introducing you to this world of magic and when they finally got the news you were okay they were the only ones who slept that night from sheer relief and exhaustion."

"I get-"

"Tanu and Coulter both did their best to keep Seth's head above water and continue mentoring him through their grief. Tanu's eyes would tear up at the very mention of you and if the murder case was brought up Coulter would get so angry he would have to take a walk. After you were found they stayed up all night downstairs talking, I could hear them from the second floor, they were laughing for the first time since your death."

"I under-"

"Warren? God, I can't even begin to tell you how your death affected him. He stayed behind in Rochester to help Trask solve your murder. When I would call him he always sounded either a word away from a breakdown or ready to kill someone. He didn't sleep, he would disappear for hours and go on long drives, he barely ate. Trask reported this all to me hoping I could give him a call and get him to snap out of it, but that night, we figured out you were alive. He snapped out of it and drove eleven hours o four hours of sleep to be a part of the search party."

"Dale...please."

Dale wasn't quite done. "And me? I didn't know what to do with myself. My family was falling apart at the seams and I couldn't fix it because I was breaking apart with them. Hearing news of your death shook me, K. Listen, am I good at emotional stuff? Hell no. But am I going to sit here and lie and act like I wasn't devastated by your passing? Hell _no_. Kendra, you are family. You saved my ass quite a few times and my brothers. You are a bright addition to this jumbled mess of a family and we never want to lose you again."

"I'm sorry," Kendra whispered.

"Kendra, that speech wasn't a scolding. It was a reminder that you are loved more than you know. You always have a place here okay?" Dale gave her a smile which she returned.

"When did you get so good at emotional talks, huh?" she teased him.

Dale rolled his eyes. "Please, that wasn't _too_ emotional. I've also been taking notes from watching Warren."

Kendra laughed and he joined in. They stayed outside watching the snowfall until Ruth called them in for supper. He watched as Kendra sat down at her usual seat, filling a seat that had been left painfully empty the past week.

His family was whole again.

* * *

5.

It was a dark day.

Dale sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He closed the barn door and locked it as the sun began to set. The past month and a half has been hard, the team that had left to go to Wyrmroost came home with three missing members.

One dead.

One dead and a traitor.

One stuck in an extradimensional space.

Of course, that last one happened to be Warren, _of course_. He always had a knack of getting himself into trouble and now was at risk of being trapped there until his food supply runs out and he starves to death...which did not make it easy for Dale to sleep at night.

Dale opened the door to the house and took his work boots off in the entryway. It was a relief to be done with the chores but now that he had nothing to do, his mind was filled with 'what if' scenarios and worries.

Throwing himself into one of the seats at the kitchen table he sighed and put his head in his hands. What was he going to do with Warren?

"Oh, hey Dale," came a quiet voice. He lifted his head and saw Kendra in the doorway, she was standing there as if she wasn't sure to come in or not.

"Hi, Kendra, what's up? Haven't seen you around today," he greeted and watched as she hesitantly stepped into the kitchen and over to the fridge. Now that he thought about it, he hasn't seen Kendra around very much all month.

There had been meals and meetings but other than that, the fairykind girl was a ghost. Not even coming downstairs for meals at times.

Kendra took a water bottle from the fridge and shrugged. "Uh, I've been around, you must have been working outside."

"Uh huh, how about the past few days, week or even month? Was I just working then?"

Kendra caught Dale's eye and he raised an eyebrow at her. She looked like a deer in headlights for a second before she schooled her expression and looked away. "I don't know, maybe we just keep missing each other."

"Like you keep missing dinner?" Dale noticed how she tried to shrug it off, taking a sip of water to avoid answering. "Kens, come on. It's me, you really think I'm not going to notice when you are avoiding me?"

"I…" Kendra seemed to deflate arms dropping to her sides and head bowing. Finally, she lifted her head, eyes directed at the ceiling as she blinked repeatedly. "It's not...I'm not...I...I'm...I'm sorry."

Her voice had dropped to a whisper by the end of the sentence and Dale had to strain to hear it, she sounded so sad that he was suddenly reminded the toll the disastrous Wrymroost mission must have had on her.

He sighed and patted the table, "Come here, K."

For a moment, he wasn't sure if she would listen, but she did, shuffling over to sit across from him at the table. He waited to see if she would say anything but Kendra remained silent so he took it as s sign to continue the conversation himself.

"Are you mad at me?"

Kendra's eyes shot up to meet his. "No! Not at all! That's not it."

"Then what is it?"

"I...I thought maybe _you_ would be mad at _me_."

Dale was stunned into silence for a moment. "Wait, what? Why would you ever think that?"

"Cause I got Warren trapped in the extradimensional space…" she mumbled, eyes dropping to the table again. Dale was at a loss for words.

He took a moment to collect his thoughts, his initial reaction was to shake her until her brain righted itself from it's obviously upside down position, but he figured that wouldn't help her. So, he thought of a new way.

"Okay, first of all," he started and pointed a finger at her. "You did _not_ get Warren trapped in the knapsack, that dumb evil dragon boy wonder did. Warren's predicament at the moment is in no way shape or form your fault. Understand that first."

"But, it was my job to protect the knapsack and him! I handed the knapsack over to Gavin because he said he would kill Warren if I didn't but the first thing he did was hurt him and knock him out!"

Kendra was obviously getting more and more upset as she ranted on, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears. Dale let her go on, she needed to get this out. "Then he lit the knapsack on fire and held me back while I watched! I tried to get to him, Dale, I did, I swear! He...he was too strong and I couldn't...I couldn't…"

The tears finally spilled over and she dropped her head into her hands. Dale's heart felt like it was being squeezed. She hadn't told them the details of what happened between her and Gavin, just that he burned the knapsack and he was eaten by a fair dragon named Raxtus.

Hearing her point of view of what had gone down, was ten times worse. Dale couldn't imagine how he would feel having to watch the knapsack Warren was in go up in flames, it was bad enough hearing it happened.

Dale got up from his seat and walked around the table to kneel in front of Kendra's chair. "Hey, kid...come on, it's okay."

"It's not okay," she sniffed, voice strained. "I...I thought he died, Dale. In that moment, I thought I was watching Warren die. I…"

"I can't imagine it was easy, I know. But he's okay for now. There's a chance," he said, reaching up and rubbing her back in hopes to soothe her. "We have hope, Kendra. We have hope."

Kendra lifted her head, tears still streaming down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have avoided you...I was just worried you didn't want to see me since I was the one who was with Warren when it happened. I figured I'd make it easier for you by staying away."

"Oh, Kendra. That's not what I thought even for a second. Don't ever think I would blame you, okay? If anything I was worried about what that experience would do to you. It was an awful thing to go through."

He wasn't lying, he was truly incredibly worried about her. The adults of the house had many conversations about what they should do in terms of helping her cope, but Kendra had been so withdrawn that they didn't think she would even talk about it.

Dale stood up and inclined his head, "Come on, let's go sit on the couch, it's a lot more comfortable."

Kendra followed him to where he plopped onto the old couch in the living room, they sat in silence for a moment before Dale spoke again.

"You know, Warren would be so much better at this conversation than I am. He would know exactly what to say, what to do. Probably say he speaks Kendra or something like that."

"That's exactly what he would say," she laughed as she wiped tears from her eyes.

Dale put an arm around her shoulders and drew her close. "We'll get him back and you can have your protector slash mother back, for now, you have your farmer slash awkward cousin."

Kendra laughed even harder at that, her giggles making Dale smile. "Protector slash mother, oh man I'll have to tell him that one."

"I'll be sure to remind you," he teased, happy she was brightening. "He got all the good emotional talking and comforting talent genes, all I got were common sense and awkwardness. I should demand a refund from my parents."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. "I think you're doing pretty well, considering you already got me laughing when I was sobbing just minutes ago."

"That's just because I'm hilarious."

"Oh, I bet."

"You'd win that bet."

"I bet."

Dale snorted and Kendra laughed along with him. He was glad that the conversation had taken a more light-hearted turn. He had planned to dig deeper into the whole Gavin fiasco but once Kendra started smiling again, he found he couldn't make himself bring her back to a sad topic.

Well, for another day then.

For now, he leaned his head on top of hers and held out his hand which she gladly took. The two just sat there, sometimes talking a little, mostly not.

A few hours later, Ruth found them still on the couch, Dale half laying down with his feet up on the sofa, Kenra laying across the couch with her head in Dale's lap. Music was playing softly from Dale's phone and Kendra was pretty much asleep.

"Dinner's ready, if she wants to come," Ruth stage whispered, a glance down showed Kendra made no sign that she had heard her grandmother.

Dale looked back at Ruth, "I'll wake her in a few minutes, I'm sure she'll want to join."

Ruth raised her eyebrows but then simply nodded and left. Dale leaned his head back against the couch, enjoying the last few minutes of rest. Even though they had really only sat there in almost near silence for hours, Dale appreciated the time with Kendra.

He woke her up a few minutes later as promised and they filed into the kitchen to join the rest of the family for dinner. Even though one of the chairs remained glaringly empty, Dale enjoyed this meal better than he had in a while. Kendra was smiling and joking with the others again, even if it was still a little subdued.

Catching his eye, she gave him a grin which he easily returned.

She was family, the past month where she had been withdrawn had been hard. Especially when Warren had been absent as well. It had felt like two pieces of the puzzle were missing and it left a bigger hole in his heart.

Now, even with one piece still out there somewhere, he had the other piece back, leaving his heart a little more whole. Sure his family wasn't completely whole, but they had patched up one piece and he was sure the other would follow soon.

That was something that helped brighten up this dark day.

* * *

 **A/N: NOTE: I put a bit of symbolism in there with the yellow butterfly! They were talking about the whole butterfly/hurricane analogy so that's where the butterfly idea came from BUT! It was YELLOW and the yellow butterfly is said to symbolize guidance and hope and in Irish lore, the yellow butterfly is a sign of a departed soul that is resting peacefully. So I thought that would be a nice little-hidden gem! (Also it starts raining because...Lena.) Anyways! I hope you liked it! Next chapter coming very soon! XOXO**


	3. 5 Times Kendra Was Protective Over Seth

**A/N: This was for the Ship Fest on tumblr and AerinM! We love a beautiful sibling relationship and I love older sister Kendra! This is also part 1 and there will be a part 2 coming up next, five points to whoever can guess what part 2 will be! Enjoy!**

* * *

1.

Marla was exhausted.

She had just given birth to her second child, a son, and his labor was ten times harder than the one of her daughter, Kendra. But as she held her newborn in her arms it was all worth it.

"So, what are you thinking for a name? I still say Zachary," her husband Scott whispered in her ear. Marla rolled her eyes, again unlike Kendra, they couldn't decide on a name.

"I told you no! That's my ex's name and we are _not_ going there," she considered for a moment. "What about-"

"Scott Jr?"

"No! Maybe Andrew?"

"How about Michael?"

"Seriously?"

A knock came at their door and a nurse peeked in. "Sorry to intrude, but your daughter would like to come in?"

Marla and Scott looked at each other and smiled. She nodded and a moment letter, tiny feet could be heard tap tapping to the door. The nurse held Kendra's tiny hand as she brought their 2-year old into the room.

"Mommy!" Kendra exclaimed as she was lifted into the hospital bed. "Baby?"

Kendra knew quite a few words by now but didn't speak in sentences often. Marla smiles at her little girl crawling so carefully onto her lap. "Yes my sweet angel, you have a little brother now."

Kendra's face lit up, Marla wasn't sure she completely understood at the time but all the same, it made her happy. She seemed to get nervous before she asked quietly, "I hold?

Marla's heart melted, she nodded, unable to refuse a Kendra. Scott situated to Kendra beside Marla and told her how to hold a baby, Kendra took it all in with wide eyes and when Marla carefully placed the baby in her lap she saw Kendra's eyes widen even more.

"Lil' brother?"

"Correct, buttercup. He's your little brother." Scott answered, his eyes soft as he watched the scene before him. Kendra fell silent, just holding the baby, but this wasn't unusual as Kendra was a quiet kid.

But the look on her face? Priceless. Marla hoped she never forgot this moment, it was truly a beautiful sight to see.

"What his name?" Kendra asked next, eyes. ever leaving the baby.

"We, uh, haven't decided yet."

Kendra looked up, she seemed to think a little before her face lit up. "Seth?"

Marla and Scott paused and looked at each other, Kendra had named one of her teddy bears Seth and so she was probably putting a connection between the teddy bear she constantly played house with and her brother.

Marla was about to pretend to think about it, but then, she really thought about it. Seth Sorenson...the name did roll off her tongue in a way that she had been waiting for. She glanced towards her husband who shrugged at her, a sign that he wasn't in disagreement.

"Hm...Would you like his name to be Seth?" Marla asked her daughter. Kendra immediately nodded enthusiastically. Throwing Scott a grin she sighed. "Well, how could I say no?"

"Seth it is!" Scott cried with a grin. Kendra's happy smile and giggle would be something Marla would keep in her mind for dark days to remind her of happy times and things she had to look forward too.

"I…" Kendra paused thinking. They waited for her to finish. "Protect...Seth."

She pronounced protect wrong but Marla understood. Warmth flooded through her body, this was her family. This was all she needed.

They were worth it.

* * *

2.

Scott sighed as he shut his laptop, he had just finished filing their taxes and needed a long night's sleep. Unfortunately, it was his turn to put the kids to bed, something that might take him hours with Seth.

They had never had any issues like that with Kendra, she had always been quiet and obedient to a T. Once Seth came along, a grew old enough to walk and talk, it became obvious that this wasn't going to be the case for him.

Seth was...wild, to say the least. He never wanted to settle down for bed, they couldn't leave him unsupervised during the day because he would get into anything and everything, he would mouth off and had a talent for bending and breaking rules.

All this...and Scott still wouldn't change the kid.

He may be a headache sometimes, but he was also an adventure waiting to happen and kept things interesting. Sure, there were times, typically when Seth was screaming because he was being punished for doing wrong, he wished for the quiet days with Kendra back.

The days where he could sit and color with her, read to her, dance with her and play house or tea party. Those days where it was just him and his little girl and a quiet house. Ever since Seth came along, those days happened very little. Seth was a full-time job and he just didn't have as much time for Kendra as he wished.

Scott shook his head while walking up the stairs to find the kids. He knew Kendra missed him, but she never complained, ever.

Even as she colored alone while he played army with Seth, even while she read alone while he tried to get Seth down for a nap, even while she practiced ballet alone while he tossed the football outside with Seth, even while she played house alone with Seth screaming in the background about wanting a cookie.

In all honesty, Scott felt bad. While he loved spending time with his little boy, he hated that he had to sacrifice time with his little girl. The problem was, it was hard to get them to enjoy the same activity.

Seth was too hyperactive to sit and color, but Kendra didn't like violence and playing army, Seth hated to read and naps so while Scott tried to get his son tired enough to take a nap by throwing the football, Kendra would practice ballet, and whenever Seth got in trouble or wouldn't follow rules, it made Kendra extremely nervous so she would hide away in her room in play.

The two of them were the exact opposite of each other.

Scott opened Kendra's door to find her room empty, which was odd. Her bedtime was in five minutes so by this time she had brushed her teeth, put on her pajamas and climbed into bed with a good book.

"Kens? Angel?" he stepped out of the room and shut the door, he walked down the hall a few feet and opened Seth's door. There, huddled together in Seth's bed were his two kids. Kendra was reading 'Goodnight, Baby Dragon' to her brother, and Seth was surprisingly listening well and looked very, very sleepy.

"Hi, Daddy," Kendra paused in her storytelling, this caused Seth to take his head off her shoulder, face lighting up.

"Dad! Kenny is readin' to me!"

Scott chuckled and walked to the bed, "I see that, kiddo."

"Come read with us! You can do your voices you always used to do," Kendra begged. "You know...back when we had storytime before bed?"

Scott's heart panged at the sound of sadness that was hidden - very poorly - in Kendra's voice. "Of course I can, sweetheart."

They cheered and moved over and made room for him to squeeze in between them, Seth crawled onto his lap and Kendra latched onto his side. "Okay, here we go."

He read not just that book, but two more at Seth's insistence. The young boy fell asleep in the middle of the last and his sister followed closely behind just before the end. Scott moved Seth as carefully as he could without waking either Seth or Kendra, then tucked him into bed.

Then he picked up Kendra and made his way to her room. As he was tucking her in, Kendra's eyes opened. "Daddy?"

"Go back to sleep, angel. It's bedtime."

"Okay…you know I've missed you, Daddy," she mumbled. Scott looked up from where he was grabbing her favorite Stitch plushie, he was frozen for a second before he moved again.

He tucked her Stitch under her arm. "Oh? But, I've always been around."

"Yeah, but you would rather play with Seth. I get it, Seth is more fun and brave and adventurous."

Scott sat on the bed with a sigh. "Kendra, that's not it at all. He just takes up most of my time. He's quite the handful, and tiring and doesn't follow rules that well an-"

"Hey! Don't talk about him that way!"

He took in the pout on Kendra's face and finger pointed at him and suddenly remembered when Kendra vowed to protect Seth the day he was born. He chuckled and raised his hands up. "All right, all right. I'm sorry. But, my point is, there just isn't enough time in my day."

"I understand," she sighed. Scott didn't like seeing her so upset. He realized that even though Seth took up most of his time, he needed to find something to do with Kendra regularly without her brother so that she didn't feel so left out.

"Hey, how about me and you find something we can do together. Just us, hm?" he proposed. Kendra popped her head up, her eyes were wide and hopeful.

"Really?"

"Yeah! Tell you what, you think of what you wanna do and let me know, okay?"

"Maybe we can bring Sethy along?"

Scott paused, "But, don't you want it to be just you and me, princess?"

"Yeah...I do...But, won't Sethy be all alone and we can't leave him alone he will get scared and who will play with him then and he'll be lonely and stuff," Kendra rambled on, ticking the points off of her fingers incorrectly.

"I promise someone will be there to play with Seth, don't you worry. Just think of something you want to do, alright?" Scott pulled her comforter up to her chin and kissed her forehead. "Night night, angel."

"Nighty night, Daddy."

With that, he turned her fairy nightlight on and left the room, leaving the door open just a smidge. He checked on Seth, tucking him in properly and kissing his forehead as well.

Satisfied that both the kids were in bed he left Seth's room and climbed the flight of stairs leading to his and Marla's bedroom on the third floor. She looked up from the book she was reading in bed and smiled.

"Well, you're up here earlier than I expected."

Scott chuckled. "Thank Kendra, when I went up to put them to bed, fully prepared to deal with Seth's antics, I found them in his bed with Kendra reading to him."

"Aw, that's sweet. Worked out well for you then, huh?"

"It sure did."

Scott stuck to his promise of going somewhere special with Kendra. She had ended up seeing a Cirque du Soleil commercial on TV and begged him to take her. Thankfully, he was able to get tickets and as he watched Kendra's face light up with awe he decided it was worth every penny.

Now, when she came to him a week later and announced she wanted to be an aerialist...Well, maybe Seth would be the least of his worries.

* * *

3.

Kendra was reading in the living room when the front door opened with a bang. She heard the sound of someone crying and rushed into the front hallway. There, she found Seth with tears streaming down his face and his knees all scraped up.

"Seth! What happened, did you fall?" Kendra hurried to his side, he was never one to cry easily and it worried her greatly to see him so upset.

"N-no, the older b-boys d-down the street p-pushed me," he sobbed. Kendra wrapped her arms around Seth and he clung onto her. "I-I just wanted to play with them b-but they c-called me names and pushed me o-over."

"I'm sorry, Sethy," Kendra felt tears sting her own eyes. "Come on, let's get mom to clean you up, huh?" she gently nudged him towards the kitchen. He followed her, wiping tears off his face.

Once she got him sitting on a kitchen chair, she ran to the stairs and yelled up to her mother. "Mommy! The boys down the street were mean to Seth and hurt him!"

She heard a distant, 'What?!" and then footsteps coming to the top of the stairs. He mother appeared looking confused. "Kens, did you say Seth was hurt?"

"Yeah, his knees are all scraped up," Kendra said. Her mother started down the stairs as soon as she heard the affirmative and hurried to where Seth was sitting.

Seeing Seth so sad made her want to cry as well. He may be an annoying little brother sometimes but he was _her_ annoying little brother.

As Kendra's mother took care of Seth, Kendra ran upstairs and grabbed a bunch of blankets from her room. Then she carried them all into Seth's room and got to work. She had a brother to cheer up.

* * *

Kendra had just placed the final pillow in place when she heard Seth coming up the stairs. She quickly stood up and waited. His door opened and Seth appeared, he stared for a second, a smile slowly coming over his face before he laughed excitedly.

"Kenny! You built a blanket fort for me?" he asked checking out the inside.

Kendra crawled in, laying back on the many pillows. "Of course! I have the DVD player and we can watch whatever you want okay?"

Seth lunged into the fort and got comfortable. "This is awesome! Totally better than whatever those lame boys are doing!"

"Totally, Sethy."

And so for hours, they watched as many movies they wanted, accepting snacks from their mother periodically, laughing, joking, and mimicking movie scenes until they eventually fell asleep cuddled up in their fort.

The memories they made that day would last them a lifetime.

* * *

4.

Kendra rushed to catch up to where her brother was storming up the street to their house. "Seth! Wait up!"

"No!"

"What do you mean 'no'?" she asked finally reaching him. He shrugged off her hand from his shoulder and she furrowed her eyebrows. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong! Mind your own business," he snapped. Kendra paused for a moment before taking a deep breath and reminding herself to be patient. Seth stomped up the driveway and to the front door.

Kendra caught up with him just as he was unlocking the house. Before she could enter behind her brother, he slammed the door in her face.

Yeah, that does it.

She threw the door back open and shut it behind her, she could hear his angry footsteps going up the stairs and ran after him. "Seth Michael Sorenson, get back here!"

"Go away!" Seth went to shut his bedroom door but this time Kendra slammed her hand onto it and stopped it from closing. After a bit of a struggle, she was able to open it wide enough to slip into his room.

Panting, she placed her hand on her hips and met Seth's glare with an equally vicious one. "Okay, you are being insanely rude to me. And for what? Saying hi to you on the bus? I don't deserve this treatment Seth, I just want to help you."

"You can't help me so just leave me alone," he groaned. Seth walked to his bed, brushing past her and sitting down heavily. "You can't fix stupid, so why bother?"

"Stupid? Who's stupid?"

"Me."

Surprised, Kendra lowered her hands off of her hips slowly. "Seth why would you say that. It isn't true."

Seth dug into his backpack and pulled out a paper. He handed it to Kendra and she read it seeing it was his latest history exam and he had gotten a D- on it. She sighed and sat next to him on the bed.

"A D- isn't that-"

"Yes, it is!" Seth exploded, throwing his hands up before letting them fall into his lap. "You can't tell me it isn't, miss 'lowest grade I have ever got was a B+'! You're smart, you don't have to worry about being the dunce of your class."

Kendra hesitantly put her arm around him, relaxing when he didn't shrug her away. "Seth, grades don't define how smart you are. Maybe you aren't the best test taker, maybe history isn't your best subject, and maybe you just had a bad day."

"Tell that to Jacob."

"Jacob Swaversy? Isn't he one of your best friends?"

Seth snorted bitterly. "I thought so...then he saw my grade and started calling me stupid and telling the whole class. Spoiler alert: I had the lowest grade."

Anger pulsed through her veins and a strong need to protect Seth overcame her heart. That was just plain cruel and outright bullying. Seth had a few run-ins when he was little with a few mean kids, but that hasn't happened in a long time.

"That's horrible, I'm sorry Sethy," Kendra earned a small smile at the old nickname. She ruffled his hair softly, struggling to find the solution to make him feel better. "Jacob was the idiot. He may have gotten a higher test score but he has no brains."

"Maybe he's hungry for them...like a zombie," Seth snickered lightly.

"I mean he looks like one doesn't he?" she laughed, he started cracking up at that causing her to laugh harder as well.

Seth sobered and turned to her. "Do you think mom and dad will be mad?"

"Nah, you know them, always saying our happiness comes before everything, even school."

"But, they're so smart...mom's a lawyer...dad's a doctor...seems like all of their smart genes went to you."

Kendra scoffed. "Please, Seth you have so much of mom's lawyer genes that it's natural to you. Whenever you get in trouble it's like watching a court case as you make deals with mom. You also know plenty of laws and so much about crime."

"Which I only know because I watch cop shows and stuff!"

"Seth, not all learning has to happen from school and books. You learn new stuff every day, tv shows, conversations, the internet, who knows. You're pretty good with street smarts Seth, sometimes that's even better than book smarts."

Seth sighed and flopped backward on his bed. Kendra did the same and they were silent for a few minutes. Kendra just hoped she did a good job at cheering him up. As Seth grew up, he accepted less and less affection from her, turning down hugs left and right. She was happy he let her comfort him today instead of brooding and pushing her away.

But still, she missed him. Seth was so outgoing with everyone until he got home. Sure they joked around sometimes and watched movies in the living room, but it wasn't the same. Kendra was a naturally clingy and cuddly person, so not being able to wrap him up in a hug when he was upset like this was hard. But she understood his boundaries.

"Hey, Kenny?" Seth spoke up suddenly. "Thanks."

She turned her head to look at him and smiled. "Of course, Sethy. What are big sisters for?"

It was silent again for a moment before she added one more thing. "And if you want me to get those idiots in trouble just let me know. Being the teacher's pet has its perks."

Seth laughed and with that, she got up to go finish her homework. Yeah sure, things were changing as time goes on. Things always change and not that she was good with it - because she most certainly isn't - she accepted it. Besides, one thing that will never change is that _no one_ messes with her baby brother.

Which is why Jacob Swaversy found himself in detention for a week for bullying.

* * *

5.

Seth woke up suddenly at the sound of a loud rumble of thunder. It echoed in his ears and he clamped his hands over them in an effort to silence the noise. He hated thunder. He hated it so much. If being afraid of thunder was childish then Seth was childish.

Another boom of thunder shook the house and Seth shook with it. He couldn't stop the whimper that came from him as he saw the flashing of lightning that followed. He sat up in bed and brought his knees to his chest. His hands were still clamped over his ears, but they did nothing to stop the sound of the next rumble of thunder from reaching him.

It was so loud that Seth was sure the house was going to crumble from the shaking it did. He cried out at the lightning flashed with a bang and hid his face in his knees. Seth had always hated thunderstorms. Always. Positively hated them. It was the one thing he would admit to being afraid of.

"Stupid thunderstorm. Stupid, stupid, stupid…" he muttered helplessly as the next boom sounded. Suddenly, he felt his bed dip with extra weight and a pair of arms wrap around him softly.

"It's okay, Seth, you're okay," came a whisper in his ear. Kendra. She had always been there to comfort him when these storms happened back home, he was glad the tradition hadn't stopped. She let go of him for a moment and Seth noticed a light turned on through the cracks of his knees.

Seth lifted his head and turned towards her. "I woke you up didn't I?"

"Nah, the thunder did. You know I'm a light sleeper, and that's quite the storm. I knew you would need me once I heard it so I came over."

"...Thanks."

Kendra settled so she was leaning against the pillows at the head of his bed and held her arms out to him. Seth didn't hesitate to crawl over and let her wrap her arms around him tightly. He laid with his head on her shoulder and wrapped his arms around her waist.

Thunder boomed and his hold on Kendra tightened and he squeezed his eyes shut. Kendra ran her hand up and down his back soothingly, her other hand smoothing his hair down. Seth appreciated the action as it helped him focus on something other than the storm.

"It's okay, the storm should be over soon, you're okay," Kendra whispered.

"I know, I know…" he responded softly, "I just...I know."

Kendra rested her head on his. "I understand. But hey, it's already clearing up. The rain isn't falling as hard and lightning hasn't struck in a while. Just thunder."

"Which is the part that scares me," Seth sighed. "I know it's stupid to be afraid of it."

Kendra's hand paused on his back. "Seth, it isn't stupid. Everyone is afraid of something, you happen to be afraid of thunder. It's not stupid."

Seth sat up, frustrated with himself. He's faced much scarier things, like zombies and dragons and even demons and he still wasn't as scared as he was now. It was stupid thunder! Why was he so scared?

"Seth?" Kendra sat up too. "You okay?"

"No! I'm afraid of something as simple as thunder! Yet I fought a demon! I killed a dragon! Why am I so afraid?" he hit his leg a few times weakly, his frustration mounting.

Kendra put an arm around him again and Seth leaned his head back on her shoulder in defeat. "I'm scared of clowns."

Seth blinked at that. "Wait, what?"

"Hate them, terrified of them. If the demon king had looked like a clown I wouldn't have even gone near him. They scare me to the point of tears even."

"You're lying."

"Am not. Ask mom, they had one at the school fair my freshman year of high school and I hid behind mom crying because it came near me."

Seth picked his head up and looked at his sister for a moment before putting it back down. "I never knew that."

Kendra shrugged lightly, moving his head up and down. They sat there for a few more minutes, listening as the rain slowly stopped falling outside. Thunder hadn't sounded for a while and Seth felt the fear leaving his body.

He lifted his head, his muscles aching from being in that position for too long. "Thanks, Kens. For sitting with me...and for not making fun of me."

Kendra smiled softly. "Of course, why would I make fun of you?"

"Cause I always make fun of you," Seth felt a little guilty at the moment, thinking of all the times he teased his sister for being afraid. "You know, on missions. I just appreciate you not getting back at me for it."

"Seth, no one likes being scared. I'm not gonna tease you when you were sitting here shaking just because you teased me a little on missions. Besides, your teasing on missions helps me not freak out as much."

Seth laid back down, head hitting his pillow softly, Kendra copied him and the two fell into silence. Exhaustion started creeping its way back into Seth's mind, filling the space fear had left. His body was reminding him it was in the middle of the night and he yawned.

Kendra surprised him by wrapping her arms around him and cuddling close. "Kens, I'm okay now, you know you don't have to cuddle me right?"

"Oh no, you aren't getting rid of me that easily. I'm staying right here and cuddling you for the rest of the night," she mumbled stubbornly. "You never let me cuddle you anymore, so I am taking this chance and milking it."

Seth laughed lightly. "You mean like we did to Viola that year?"

"Never bring that up again."

"It was your idea!"

"I said what I said, Seth!"

He tried his best to smother his laughter but he knew he failed when Kendra reached up and flicked his forehead. "Ow! Okay! Okay! I won't laugh at you!"

Kendra didn't bother to even answer so he settled into his bed more, he hesitated for a moment before he put an arm around Kendra as well. He might not like to cuddle that much, but he couldn't lie and say he hated it.

Especially when it was Kendra. Seth remembers when they were kids he would always try to convince their parents to let him sleep in Kendra's room, just so they could cuddle. Sure, he grew out of that, but every now and then he just needed a hug from his big sister.

"I can practically hear you thinking, go to sleep rugrat," Kendra sleepily whispered.

"Do you remember that show? That was a good show, which character do you think I'm most like?" He couldn't resist teasing her, it was almost like an instinct now.

"Seth."

That was the only warning he got and Seth figured it would be best to quit while he was ahead when she was surrounded by pillows that could be used as weapons. Never in his life had he beaten her in a pillow fight.

"Night, Kenny."

"Night, Seth."

Seth was expecting to have to pull an all-nighter because of the storm, he should have known better than that with Kendra around.

Sure, he might tease her and make fun of her and be an overall annoying little brother most of the time. But he loved his older sister and he knew that anything could happen, he could royally mess up or the world could be ending, and she would have his back.

As he fell asleep, he thought of all the times Kendra was by his side whenever he needed her. Through bullies, or when he got hurt from being a bit reckless, or reading to him at night, or even setting him on the right track when he got a little too rebellious. She always stood up for him, even when he was wrong at times, and that meant everything to Seth.

Yeah, he had the best big sister in the world.

* * *

 **A/N: AHHHHH don't you just LOVE these cuties. We need more loving sibling interactions in Dragonwatch 3 orI'll cry Brandon Mull, seriously! Anyway, I hope you all liked it and will look forward to part 2!**

 **Also, to all those who are reviewing, thank you so much! Your nice comments motivate me to do better and write more and they make me VERY happy!**

 **See you next time! XOXO**


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